


Consequences

by Kunoichi21



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Car Accidents, Character Death, F/M, M/M, Multi, Texting, texting while driving
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-14
Updated: 2015-08-13
Packaged: 2018-01-24 17:03:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 34,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1612688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kunoichi21/pseuds/Kunoichi21
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Roxas and his siblings are in a terrible car crash at the hands of one of Roxas' old friends, they are overwhelmed with grief. With Axel's help, can Roxas learn to forgive and move on? It's a long and arduous road, but Axel is determined to get him to the end. And maybe he can teach Roxas to open his heart up and love him along the way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I just wanted to provide a quick warning to everyone.
> 
> This does, obviously, contain character death, serious injury as a result of a car accident, and eventually, boy-love as well. If any of these things offend you or are triggers, I recommend you don't read this.
> 
> Disclaimer: If I owned Kingdom Hearts, the characters mentioned (including some FF characters), or anything besides this plot, would I really be writing fanfiction about it?

“You asshole,” Roxas muttered as his redheaded best friend beat him at another round of Super Smash Brothers. Axel snorted.

“You’re just upset because you can’t beat me, but that doesn’t make me an asshole.”

“It does when you hit me and send the character flying off the screen _every_ damn time,” the blonde scowled at him.

“Okay fine, it makes me an asshole. What did you expect from me though?” Axel’s trademark smirk was fixed on his face.

Sighing, Roxas said, “I don’t know.” He was being a sore loser. But it was hard _not_ to be when Axel really did beat him every round every time they played this game. He was about to say something else when he heard his phone blaring his sister’s ringtone out of his pocket.

He pulled the phone from his pocket, swiping his thumb across the screen to answer the call.

“Hello?”

“ _Hey Roxas! I was just letting you know that I’m on my way to come pick you up. I’ve got Ven already, and we’re gonna go meet mom and dad for dinner. I’ll be there in about five minutes, so make sure you’re ready, okay?_ ”

“Sounds good. I’ll see you soon.”

“ _Alright. I love you!_ ”

“I love you too, Nam.”

He quickly hung up the phone, searching for his shoes in the redhead’s room.

“Was that Naminé?” Axel asked from his spot on the floor.

“Yea, she’s gonna be here in a few minutes to pick me up. I gotta get my stuff together. Except I can’t seem to find my other shoe.” He bent down to search under the bed. He called a triumphant ‘Aha!’ when he pulled his other converse sneaker free from the clutches of the rabid dust-bunnies under Axel’s bed.

“How did your shoe find its way under my bed?” Axel sounded just as confused as Roxas felt.

“I have no idea. But help me get my homework together, please?”

Axel did just that, grabbing all the loose papers from his desk and sorting out the ones that belonged to him. That was relatively easy, since his handwriting resembled chicken-scratch, while Roxas’ looked similar to a girl’s handwriting with how neat it was. He put the papers in the blonde’s notebook folder as Roxas was finishing straightening up the books in his bag.

Axel handed him the three-subject notebook which was unceremoniously stuffed in his bag as neatly as it could be. Roxas zipped his bag closed, making sure he still had his wallet in his back pocket and cell phone in his right-side front pocket. He heard the sound of a car horn honking, letting him know that his sister had arrived.

The two teenage boys walked downstairs, where Roxas could hear Axel’s mom in the kitchen with the redhead’s older brother Reno. Sounded like they were making dinner.

“Are you leaving, Roxas?” She called.

“Yea, my sister’s here with Ven in the car.”

“Alright, well, be safe! See you tomorrow?”

“Sure thing, Mrs. V!” Roxas smiled to the rather short woman.

“Now, Roxas, really. How many times do I have to tell you to call me Yuffie?” She smiled back at him.

“As many times as it takes, ma’am.”

“Now you’re just doing it to make me feel old,” she playfully observed. Yuffie Valentine was still very youthful looking, despite the fact that both of her sons were fast approaching their twenties. Reno was on the cusp of it, being nineteen. Axel had just turned seventeen. “Whatever, I’ll see you tomorrow, Roxas.” And with that, she retreated back into the kitchen to finish making whatever dish.

Axel continued to lead his best friend to the front door, Roxas promising to text the redhead after he got back home from wherever he was meeting his parents. The redhead disappeared back inside as Roxas stepped off the porch, backpack strapped securely to him.

“Hey Ven, hey Nam,” he said while casually putting his book bag in the backseat next to his ten year old brother. As he was doing so, his very pregnant sister got out of the driver’s seat.

“Hi Rox. Do you think you could drive to the restaurant? My back started hurting from the way I had to sit while I drove, and I don’t think I could make it that far if I drove from here.” Naminé was about seven months pregnant with her current boyfriend’s child and was rather large.

Roxas agreed and walked around the back of the vehicle while Naminé walked around the front, sliding into the passenger seat gingerly. Roxas was a little nervous – he didn’t have his license yet, only a permit – but he wasn’t going to let it show. He was a safe driver and knew better than to be distracted by anything, except maybe music. After adjusting the seat a little bit and fixing his mirrors where he could see behind him, he pulled out of the rock driveway of Axel’s house, heading away from the dead-end and back out towards the highway. He hated that Axel lived so far out in the sticks, because he had to take a very specific route to get there.

Roxas made it to the highway and his posture became a little stiffer. He’d only driven on the highway two other times, and that had been with his dad teaching him. He heard Naminé laugh, and he assumed it was at how ridiculous he probably looked. He was about to say something when the phone in his sister’s hands started ringing; it was most likely her boyfriend.

The pregnant blonde turned the radio down to answer.

“Hey Riku!” Roxas was right about the call being Naminé’s boyfriend. Roxas was a little wary of the silver-haired man, but he never approved of anyone interested in his sister. He always thought she was too good for all her exes, but so far, Riku was in his good graces, despite getting his sister pregnant while she was studying to become a nurse.

He’d zoned out for part of the one-sided conversation.

“Yea, I’ll come meet you after dinner. I’ve got Roxas and Ven with me now, so after I drop them off with my parents, I’ll come over… No, Roxas is driving right now… My back started hurting… A back massage sounds great, actually… No, there’s no backing out of it now; I’m holding you to it… Alright. I’ll see you later. I love you, Riku… ‘Kay, bye!” She hung up, going back to texting her best friend, Kairi.

Ven spoke up from the backseat, “You’re not coming home for the night?”

“Sorry, Ven, but I told Riku I’d help him study for a big test he’s got tomorrow.”

“But you’re gonna miss family game night!” The ten year old sounded like the world was going to end because his sister wasn’t going to be home for their family’s Thursday night tradition – after dinner, they always gathered together to play some kind of board game, like the Logo Quiz, or Would You Rather.

“I know, Ventus, I’m sorry. But Riku really needs my help tonight. The test he’s taking is going to be worth a large part of his grade and I want him to do well so he can continue getting grants for school.”

Ven huffed a pouty ‘fine’ and let the topic drop.

“Hey, cheer up! I’ll be there for next week’s game night; I’m sure missing one won’t mess things up for you guys.” Naminé turned around in her seat to face her youngest brother, ruffling his hair. “Now come on, put on a smile for me. Please?” At that, Ven gave a small smile and attempted to put his hair back how it was – not that that was hard to do anyway. His hair did the same thing as Roxas’ did and swept itself to the right thanks to all the cowlicks the boys both had.

As Naminé turned back to face the right way, they started down a small, curving hill in the road. When they reached the bottom, Roxas became even more nervous. He could see, down the road a little ways that the car headed in the other direction of this two-lane road was apparently having difficulty staying straight.

“Uh, Nami,” he sounded a little scared.

“I see them Roxas. But we’re just going to have to pray they stay in their lane, because there’s no shoulder for you to pull off on to let them pass. If they start crossing the lines, honk, okay?” She kept the slightly frazzled driver calm enough to answer with a small ‘okay’ from his seat.

In the other car, the driver happened to be one of Roxas’ friends from middle school, Hayner. Now, Hayner had been driving long enough to be comfortable doing so – so unlike Roxas. Hayner was also notorious for being on his phone while he drove; he often joked that he was invincible, especially after having beat his old rival Seifer in a struggle match four summers ago, and every summer since. His girlfriend, also one of Roxas’ old friends – Olette – was constantly telling him to keep his phone in the console of his car if he was driving, so he wouldn’t be distracted. He never followed her advice.

_From: Olette  
_ _6:59 PM_

_You’re not driving now, are you?_

He typed out a one-word reply, saying yes.

His phone buzzed again moments later.

_From: Olette  
_ _7:00 PM_

_Hayner! Why don’t you ever listen to me when I tell you not to text and drive?!_

_To: Olette  
_ _7:00 PM_

_ill b ok lette_

As he was hitting the send button, his passenger, and longtime friend Pence shouted from his seat, “Dude! Look out,” when he put his phone away, realizing that they’d crossed the double yellow lines into the other lane.

A second after Pence’s outburst, Roxas laid on the horn, not realizing that it was too late. He tried to swerve the car further to the outside of his lane, just as the car crashed into his side, pointing him in the direction of a light pole, which Naminé’s side of the car struck hard. The airbags immediately deployed from the impact, jarring the blonde siblings and knocking them unconscious momentarily. Ven, in his hurry to get away from the impending doom had removed his seat belt to sit in the seat behind his sister, being halfway across the bench when the collision happened, and hitting his head on the passenger side window, cracking the glass and falling unconscious as well.

In Hayner’s car, the dirty blonde had tried to brake but was unable. When he hit the other vehicle, his seatbelt held him back, but his head snapped forward, hitting the steering wheel. His airbags didn’t deploy. He and Pence were sprayed with the glass of the windshield, the chubby brunette guarding his face with his arms. His heart was pounding a mile a minute in his chest, adrenaline having kicked into overdrive. He was still breathing hard when the truck in the southbound lane came suddenly upon the accident, attempting to swerve onto the shoulder of the northbound lane, but instead not turning soon enough to do so – hitting Pence’s side of the car head on. Pence screamed as his window broke against the force of the second collision and fell into the welcoming blackness of unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

“Ugh… what happened?” Hayner spoke softly, blearily opening his eyes. His head was pounding. He vaguely remembered the seconds before the crash before becoming more alert. And then the flashes of his memory started. Pence’s yell. Hitting the other car. “Oh shit!”

He looked over at his brown-haired companion, seeing the brunette slumped over in the seat. He yelled, “Pence? Pence! Wake up! Come on, please,” he started begging. He started crying, the shock of everything kicking in. He hollered out of the hole the windshield left, “Help! Someone, help!” His body felt cold and numb as it sank in that _he_ did this. He wailed, reverting to a line of psychological defense used by small children, calling for his mom.

The driver of the truck that hit his car managed to get out of his pickup, and Hayner could hear him speaking with emergency responders. His ears started ringing and he was breathing quickly, like he’d just run a marathon. Hyperventilation. He blacked out as he heard a distant wail of sirens, likely coming for everyone. One last thought broke through before he slipped. _I’m sorry_.

 

~o~

 

As Roxas was opening his eyes, all he was aware of was pain. Everywhere. He couldn't remember what had happened. He saw flashes of red and blue, not understanding the meaning of the lights. He heard muffled talking, but he couldn't make out what was being said. Despite the pain in his neck, he looked over to the right, taking in the sight of his sister with glass embedded in her skin, lacerations decorating her stomach thanks to the airbags pushing the broken glass of the window into her. Blood stained her clothes and her left arm was draped over her stomach, as if that would shield it from any harm.

He tried to speak, “V-Ven? Na-mi?” He got no responses. He tried again, “Ventus,” his voice came out in a whisper. “Ven, can you hear me?” He looked as far into the backseat as his neck allowed him to, seeing only an arm laying in the seat, the rest of his little brother’s body on the floor. Then he registered the giant bloodstain on the window, highlighting the cracks in the glass.

Roxas tried to move then, which caught the attention of the rescuers outside. One called to his team, “Hey, this one’s moving!” Three of the paramedics and firefighters made their way over, and one tried to get his attention.

“Kid, hey! I need you to stop moving! You’re gonna do more damage,” he tried to speak as calmly as he could, knowing that if he sounded anything _but_ calm, it would send Roxas faster into shock.

“Hey, kid!” The paramedic reached into the car, setting a gloved hand on Roxas’ shoulder, grounding Roxas enough to realize that there was someone trying to talk to him. “Listen to me, okay? If you keep trying to move, you might make more problems for yourself. I need you to sit still,” Roxas followed the instructions, looking like a deer in the headlights. “Can you tell me your name, son?”

“Roxas… Roxas Strife.” He was trying hard not to cry.

“Okay, Roxas, that’s good. Who’s with you in your car?” The blonde gulped down his fear for the time being. He was vaguely aware of the firefighters messing around with the equipment, knowing that they were acquiring the Jaws of Life.

“My sister, Naminé. She’s seven months pregnant, you have to get her out! And… And my brother, Ventus; he’s in the backseat. You have to get them first, please!” Roxas was working himself up into hysteria.

“Roxas, listen to me. You have to calm down. I know this is scary and we’re doing everything we can to get you three out, but you have to stay calm. Can you do that?” The paramedic kept his hands on Roxas’ head, keeping him from moving it.

“Okay…” Roxas sniffled, feeling the tears run down his cheeks. He was trying to even out his breathing again; trying not to sob.

“Alright, now, my partner is going to put a brace around your neck, to make sure it’s stable. Will you hold your head still if I take my hands away?”

“Uh-huh.” The paramedic removed his hands, allowing his partner to reach in and secure the ugly, white brace around his neck, keeping his head fixed in one position.

As that was being done, the paramedic who had been talking with him was telling the other responders about his siblings. He came back over to Roxas.

“Roxas, can you tell me where it hurts? I need to know what kind of injuries you have.”

“Um… it’s everywhere… and… I can’t… I can’t feel my legs. Oh God, I can’t feel my legs!”

“Hey, Roxas, calm down! _Calm down!_ Take a deep breath with me, okay? In,” he breathed in deeply, pulling Roxas back out of his hysteria. “And out.”

Roxas mimicked the paramedic, breathing deeply like he was told. He kept doing that, forcing himself to remain calm.

The paramedic – whose name Roxas could see was written on a nameplate on the uniform as A. Jones – called out, “We've got a possible spinal cord injury over here!” The words didn't make sense in Roxas’ mind.

It was at this point in time that Naminé regained consciousness. She was alert almost immediately, whimpering loudly before letting out a scream. There was a wetness between her legs, but she couldn't tell if it was from blood or if her water had broken.

“N-Nam! Naminé!” Roxas desperately wanted to look over at his sister, but the brace around his neck kept him from doing just that. He reached his arm over, grabbing her arm and slowly pulling it towards him, managing to twine his fingers with hers. He squeezed and held tight to her, wishing he could do more. “Nami… Please don’t cry…”

Roxas could tell she was about to go into shock. He looked to Jones, careful to not try to move his neck. “You have to help her, please.” Her sobs were breaking Roxas’ heart even more.

Jones nodded and went around to the passenger side of the car. He spoke calmly to Naminé, not wanting to upset her further. Roxas continued breathing deeply. In, out. He was startled when he heard the squeaking and groaning of the car, knowing that the firefighters were prying the passenger door open to save his sister and, hopefully, her baby. Finally, Naminé squeezed his hand back.

“Roxas… Roxas are you okay?” Leave it to her to put others before herself. She couldn’t look over, thanks to the brace they’d secured around her neck as well.

“Yea, Nam. I’m okay.”

“I don’t hear Ven… Roxas, why don’t I hear Ven?” Her voice wavered, sounding watery. She was doing her best to remain calm, following her brother’s example. Deep breath in, and let it out.

“I don’t know, Nam,” tears continued leaking down his cheeks. He sniffed.

The process was excruciatingly slow – or so it seemed. Finally, they were able to remove the passenger door and they cut the seatbelt, pulling it off. They set to work cutting the roof of the car off so that they would be able to slide the yellow boards into the destroyed vehicle and get the blonde siblings to the hospital. When they managed to remove the roof, the back doors came open easily. One of the paramedics leaned in, and Roxas was thinking, _Thank God! They’re gonna save Ven!_

“I don’t have a pulse for this one…” The paramedic spoke into his radio, “I have a child, male, about nine or ten years old, DOA.” There was a static-y response from the other end of the radio.

None of that mattered to Roxas. He’d gotten hung up on the words ‘no pulse’ and the world felt like it was spinning. Ven… Didn’t make it? Finally, Roxas allowed himself to break down. He sobbed, and he sobbed _hard_. What would happen now? Someone needed to call his parents… His entire body felt numb. Roxas went into shock.

Naminé felt her entire world crumbling around her. She’d heard those words that meant her youngest brother was dead. She muttered silently, “No… not Ven.” Her chest heaved, the trauma making her puke. She coughed as she expelled bile. Everything went black after that.

The paramedics and firefighters were able to get the yellow backboards into the car, behind both of the older siblings and free them from the wreckage. The other vehicle, which held Hayner and Pence was already empty, those two having been transported twenty minutes ago. Roxas and Naminé were loaded onto gurneys and strapped down for transport. As they were put into the two waiting ambulances, a coroner arrived. With help, Ven’s lifeless body was removed from the vehicle and laid out on the road, and then finally zipped into a black body bag. Police hung their heads in sadness. They held a moment of silence as the ambulances sped off towards Traverse Town Mercy Hospital.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here we have a brief layout of injuries and what happened to each character. Aside from Mr. Truck Driver, Hayner suffered the least amount of injuries. It always seems to happen that way, doesn't it? The person who causes the wreck is the one who makes it out with scratches and bruises and such. Anyway, I hope you all can get a real feel for the emotions and the guilt I tried to convey. Again, leave me a comment if you liked it, or if you see an error or something. Pretty please?


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The news of Ventus' death is being delivered, and we get a small update on Nami. How will Cloud and Tifa handle it?

While the two surviving siblings were being rushed to the hospital, Naminé’s phone started to ring. The paramedic nearest to it lifted it up, seeing a picture of a woman with long brownish-black hair, and MOM flashing across the screen. He took a chance and answered it.

“Hello, are you Naminé Strife’s mother?” he spoke in a serious tone of voice.

“ _Yes… Who is this? Where’s Naminé?_ ”

“Ma’am, my name is Terra Bryant. I’m a paramedic for Traverse Town. Your children were involved in an accident on Highway V. Another vehicle crashed into them. You should make any calls you need to and meet us at Traverse Town Mercy Hospital.”

“ _Wh… what? No… That’s… You… You’re lying to me. My babies are fine! They have to be…_ ” There was a man’s voice talking to the obviously distraught mother. A very distinct sob could be heard and then the man was speaking to Terra.

“ _I need you to tell me what just happened with my wife. She just broke down sobbing and I missed whatever the conversation was. All she said was ‘he’s lying’ and I can’t get any more out of her._ ”

“Listen, I’m a paramedic for Traverse Town. All you need to know is that your kids were struck by another vehicle and we’re taking them to Traverse Town Mercy Hospital. I’ll make sure to radio ahead so that the doctors know you’re coming. And… I’m so sorry I had to break this news to you…”

“ _No… thank you for letting us know. I just need to know… is Naminé going to make it? And her baby?_ ”

“I can’t say one way or the other right now. She has some extensive damage to her right leg, and we’re working to get the bleeding on her stomach under control, but I can’t tell you anything about the baby. The hospital will know more.”

The man on the other end of the phone started sniffling, his voice sounding watery as he said, “ _Do whatever you have to, to save my little girl._ ”

“We’re trying, sir. We’ll see you at the hospital…” The line went dead and Terra’s heart went out to those parents. He looked down at Naminé’s face, seeing her breath lightly fog up the oxygen mask covering her mouth and nose, and put her phone back into the purse she’d had grasped in her hand.

Terra’s partner, Aqua, finally found a vein with which to start an IV for the girl. She hooked up a bag of fluid, as well as a portable heart rate monitor. Thankfully, Naminé was stable, though she was still bleeding quite a bit from the cuts on her stomach, which Terra was trying to extract glass shards from. The way the car’s windshield had broken sent glass flying into the car just before the airbags had deployed, which meant that the glass was shoved into the blonde’s belly.

Aqua worked on the blonde’s seriously mangled leg and got the bleeding under control. She wrapped it in layers of gauze, not wanting to seal it because the doctors would be operating on it. Finally, she put a splint around Naminé’s right arm, setting it so that it could be put in a cast when they arrived at the hospital. Traverse Town’s ambulances lacked the necessary equipment to check on babies in utero, and they both silently prayed that this wouldn't end the child’s life before it began.

By the time they arrived at the hospital, Terra had radioed ahead like he said he would, telling them that the Strife parents would be arriving soon as well and to accommodate them. He and Aqua had managed to remove all the glass from the cuts on Naminé’s stomach and clean the wounds and stitch them up.

The doctors and nurses met each ambulance in the emergency drop-off area, being filled in on the situation before exchanging gurneys and equipment and wheeling the siblings off to be operated on, hopefully saving their lives.

Terra and Aqua decided to wait out in the emergency bay until they met with the parents. They weren't left waiting very long. Soon enough, an older model silver sedan drove up, and a man with spikey blonde hair and wide blue eyes stepped out. A woman who looked like the picture on Naminé’s phone sat in the car still, tears streaming down her face and her eyes appearing empty. She was in denial.

The blonde man spoke, “Are you the guy I talked to in the ambulance? I’m Naminé’s father.”

“Yes, sir,” Terra responded. “We were the ones who rode with Naminé.”

“What’s her condition right now?” He seemed frantic.

“Well, like I told you on the phone, her right leg was critically injured, and we managed to get the bleeding to stop on the way over, but while the doctors were moving her to the other gurney, it started again. She had several good-sized glass shards embedded in her stomach from the windshield, but we pulled those out and got the wounds stitched up. Her right arm is broken as well, and we set it in a splint. She was unconscious though I think that was from the shock of everything taking over; she didn't seem to have a concussion though.”

And now, the blonde was hesitant. “…And her baby?”

“Our ambulances don’t have any ultrasound equipment yet, so we’re not really sure of the condition of the baby. I’m so sorry, Mr. Strife.” Terra was genuine in his apology. “I know I can’t do much else for you, but… why don’t you take your wife inside right here; I’ll park your car and come find you afterwards.”

A few tears slipped out of Cloud’s eyes as he said a quick thank you, pulling Tifa out of the car behind him and walking into the hospital. He set his wife down in one of the chairs of the waiting room before heading up to the desk to ask what was going on with his children.

“My name is Cloud Strife; I was told that my children were in an accident and brought here. Their names are Naminé, Roxas, and Ventus.” The woman behind the counter offered a quick apology as she looked in the system.

“Okay, it looks like Roxas and Naminé are in surgery right now. I don’t see—” She was cut off by a doctor who had come around the corner, knowing exactly who the nurse was talking to.

“Mr. Strife?” He had a deep, commanding voice.

“Yes?” Cloud looked at the man. The doctor had very fair blonde hair and eyes that looked almost coppery. His mustache and beard were graying slightly and he had a few lines in his forehead and around his eyebrows.

“I’m Doctor Wise, but you can call me Ansem. I need you to come with me, please.”

That statement was an immediate red flag in Cloud’s mind, but he only nodded, grabbing Tifa’s hand and pulling her up out of the chair, helping her to walk with him as he followed Ansem down the hall. Before they managed to get to the more private waiting room Ansem was leading them to, Riku came in and caught up. Cloud was thankful to have him there, glad he’d thought to call the silver-haired young man before he and Tifa left the restaurant.

They filed in one-by-one after Ansem, allowing the door to click shut behind them. Riku was tense as he sat down on Tifa’s other side, laying his hand over one of hers in her lap. Tifa appeared to be snapping out of her daze as the noise faded into the background. Cloud was holding Tifa’s other hand, not wanting to sit.

“Mr. Strife, I’m afraid I have some very bad news for you. I suggest you sit down before I tell you,” Ansem’s voice was not as booming in the quiet room as it had been out by the desk. Cloud numbly sat down, already fearing what was to be said. Doctor Wise took a seat on the coffee table in front of the chairs the trio occupied.

“From what I heard over our radio, your son Ventus was pronounced dead on arrival. It seems that he died from the impact because he’d removed his seatbelt in the seconds before the collision… I’m so very sorry for your loss, but when the coroner is finished, I’ll need you to come down to the morgue to ID the body and then fill out some paperwork. I’ll give you some time alone now.” He stood, his head low from the news he’d just delivered, and walked out, meeting Terra in the hallway.

The brunette paramedic entered just as Tifa seemed to finally grasp what Doctor Wise said, fresh tears escaping her eyes as she sobbed into Cloud’s shoulder. Now it was Cloud’s turn to be in denial. He felt the weight of the world coming down on him, and mechanically he moved his arms to hold Tifa’s shaking form against him. He silently wept.

Riku let out a quiet ‘Oh God…’ at the news, a few tears making tracks down his cheeks as he looked up at Terra, sending him a questioning glance.

“I’m not really sure what to do now, but I have their car keys. Here,” he said, handing the key ring over. “They’re parked in row B about halfway up.”

“Thank you…” Riku replied. He was sure that they wouldn't be leaving for a while. The paramedic left the room, shutting the door quietly behind him as he watched the parents grieve. He’d heard the other paramedic announce Ventus’ death, but he knew it wasn't his place to say what had happened. He said a small prayer for the family and friends of the victims and went back out to join Aqua on their short break.

Before either of them could say anything, their radios picked up another static-y message. “All first responders, we have an attempted suicide at…” The two partners jumped into their ambulance as dispatch rattled off the address, acknowledging the driver who’d sat in the vehicle while waiting for the next call. They replied to dispatch and headed on their way, leaving the sight of the busy emergency bay in the rearview side mirrors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there we have it... If you have any questions, please let me know. I'll try to answer to the best of my ability, but I'm not gonna give anything away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, in this chapter, there's a quite a bit going on. The baby is born, but definitely not out of the woods. Roxas and Nami have their surgeries... I'll let you see what happens from there.

The hours ticked by very slowly for Cloud, Tifa, and Riku. Riku had to call his school so that he would be excused from the test he was supposed to be studying for. Thank goodness they had someone in the office late on Thursday nights.

It was just past midnight when someone else came to find the trio to update them. This doctor had platinum blonde hair and large green eyes. He was a lot shorter than Doctor Wise.

“Are you here for Roxas and Naminé?” He asked. They all nodded.

“I’m Doctor Evans; I’m overseeing the care that those two receive. I’ve got Roxas in his own room right now, but I’m afraid Naminé is still in surgery. Follow me,” he led them from the small waiting room they’d been in, taking them down a series of hallways and stopping in front of an individual patient room, number 242.

Before opening the door, he spoke in a hushed tone, “Roxas might not look like he’s very bad right now, but don’t let that fool you. I’m going to be very frank right now, Mr. and Mrs. Strife: the chances of Roxas ever walking again are less than five percent. He’s going to have no feeling in his lower half for a long while, and after some time, he might get a sensation similar to what happens when, say, you lay on your arm for a long period of time and it ‘goes to sleep.’ He’s hooked up on a catheter right now, until he wakes up from the anesthesia. He’s got mild whiplash in his neck and his left arm was fractured in a few places. We've got him hooked up to ventilator as well, because his lungs were affected by the airbag, but that’s just temporary. When he wakes up, please don’t hesitate to call for me and we’ll take the tube out of his mouth.” Doctor Evans opened the door to the brightly lit room.

Cloud, Tifa, and Riku all entered, and Doctor Evans excused himself to go check on Naminé, so he would have an update on her for them.

Roxas seemed very peaceful on the bed. He had the tube in his mouth and the ventilator was breathing for him. There were two lines for IVs, one connected to his left hand and the other in the crook of his elbow on his right arm. The doctor had failed to mention the bruises and scratch-like cuts that littered the blonde’s skin.

Tifa, careful to not step on any of the tubes surrounding her son, sat on the edge of the bed, grasping Roxas’ hand in her own. “My baby,” she sobbed quietly. Cloud sat down in one of the chairs on the other side of Roxas’ bed. Next to him, in the other chair, was a bag of Roxas’ possessions, including his cell phone. Deciding to busy himself, he went through the belongings. The clothes Roxas was in when he arrived at the hospital had been cut off of him and had several small areas where blood had stained them.

Cloud looked at the cell phone in the bag, noticing the small LED light blinking. When he unlocked the device, he saw four missed calls and seven text messages from Roxas’ best friend Axel. Cloud and Tifa were good friends with the redhead’s mother and father, and Cloud pulled out his own phone, scrolling to Yuffie’s number, and dialing. He hoped she was still awake.

“ _Cloud? Hey. What’s up? You never call me. Especially not this late at night. Everything alright?_ ”

“No, Yuffie, nothing’s alright… The kids were… they were hit by another car on the highway, on their way to meet Tifa and me for dinner.” He stood now, taking the call out to the hallway. He left the door cracked behind him as he stood just outside of the room.

“ _Oh my God, Cloud, I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do for you guys? Do you need anything?_ ” She was so sincere, and Cloud teared up again while she spoke.

“I don’t think we need anything right now, but I was calling because I’d seen some messages from Axel on Roxas’ phone. Would you be able to tell him what’s going on? We’ll have to call the school in the morning and alert them so Roxas doesn't have to worry about his assignments…” Cloud trailed off.

“ _Oh, of course I’ll tell him. How is Roxas by the way? And Naminé and Ventus?_ ”

“The doctor said Roxas may not walk ever again, that his chances are less than five percent… And he’s got some whiplash and a couple fractures in his left arm… And he’s covered in bruises and scratches… The only update we got on Naminé was from when she was in the ambulance. They said her right leg was majorly damaged and her right arm was broken. They didn't know anything about her baby, only that her stomach was pretty cut up, but the paramedics said they stitched those cuts. And Ven…” Cloud sobbed at what he was about to say. “Ven was pronounced dead on the scene…”

Yuffie gasped, “ _Ven’s dead? Oh, Cloud… I’m… I’m sorry. How are you and Tifa holding up?_ ”

“We’re… well, we’re not okay… I don’t think it’s really, fully sunk in yet…”

“ _Hey, if there’s anything at all I can do for you, please let me know. I’m more than happy to help you out with anything. I mean that. I’ll come by the hospital tomorrow after I take Axel to school. Is there anything you want me to bring for you guys? Clean clothes or something?_ ”

Cloud was grateful to have such a supportive friend in this ordeal. “Um… If you wanna grab some clothes for Tifa, I’m sure she’d appreciate it. I was gonna go home to take a shower tomorrow, so I can wait until you get here to leave. And… some coffee would be great, Yuf.”

“ _Coffee and clothes for Tifa… got it. I guess… I’ll see you in the morning, then?_ ”

“Yea. See you then.” He hung up the phone then. He wiped the tears staining his face and tried to compose himself as he went back in the room. He might as well try to doze a little bit, since he was sure it would take a while for Roxas to wake up. And who knew how long the update on Naminé would take?

 

~o~

 

After Yuffie hung up the phone with Cloud, she took a few minutes to steel herself for the conversation she was about to have with Axel. She knew he wouldn't want to go to school in the morning when he heard the news, but until Roxas was able to handle visitors, she wasn't going to let her son miss school. 

Yuffie knocked on the door to Axel’s room, seeing a dim light underneath the door. She called, “Axel? You awake honey?” She peered in, seeing Axel in bed with the rest of his homework scattered around him.

“Hey mom,” he said, not really looking up from his work.

“Can we talk, Axel? I just got off the phone with Cloud.” She fully opened the door, coming inside and taking a seat on the bed in the only spot that wasn't taken up with a textbook or notebook.

“Yea, sure,” he replied, setting aside what he was working on. “What’s up?”

“Well… Apparently after Roxas left, he was on his way with his brother and sister to go meet Cloud and Tifa for dinner… And I guess when they got to the highway, they were hit by another car. They’re in the hospital right now, Axel."

“What?” Axel was floored. He figured Roxas had just forgotten to text him and fell asleep or something. “Is he… He’s gonna be okay, right?”

“He’ll _survive_. But Axel, the doctor said Roxas has less than a five percent chance of ever walking again.”

“Oh, God, Roxas…” Tears filled Axel’s eyes as he thought about his best friend. “Do they know anything about Ven and Naminé yet?”

“They said Naminé had some damage to one of her legs, and she has a broken arm, but no word on her baby yet. And Ven was… He’s dead, honey…” Yuffie was quiet as she let the news sink in.

Axel didn't know what to say or do. His best friend was in the hospital, and said best friend’s little brother was dead. He swore he’d do whatever it took to help Roxas through everything. They weren't best friends for nothing.

“I wanna go see him tomorrow.”

“I knew you’d say that, Axel, but I don’t want you missing school. And besides that, I don’t know if he can even have visitors outside of family right now. I’m going to go take some clean clothes by the hospital tomorrow for Tifa, and I’ll find out while I’m there if he can have visitors by the time school is over. Okay?”

Axel had no choice but to accept her answer. “Fine…”

“I know this is a hard situation and that you want to be there with him, but you understand what I said, right?”

“Yea… I know where you’re coming from.”

“Okay. And Axel?” The redhead looked back up at Yuffie. “Try to get some sleep tonight.” She closed the door behind her, leaving Axel to himself.

 

~o~

 

It was about three in the morning by the time Naminé was out of surgery. Roxas was wheeled to the room where his sister was, Tifa, Cloud, and Riku following behind the nurses closely. It was at that time that Doctor Evans came back to them. He kept them from going into the room (315) until he was able to give them an update on her condition.

He addressed Riku, “I’m assuming you’re the baby’s father?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Alright. Before I tell you about Naminé, I wanted you to know, we had to perform an emergency C-Section for the baby. There was some internal bleeding that Naminé had that was causing pressure to build up in her uterus. The child has been moved to the NICU, and is under close observation until we’re sure he’s out of the woods. You’ll have to help fill out paperwork about his birth certificate and such, but it can wait until Naminé wakes up.” Doctor Evans turned to Tifa and Cloud now.

“As for your daughter… We got the bleeding to stop when we performed the Cesarean section and got her stabilized. Unfortunately, with her leg being so badly damaged, we weren’t able to repair it. That left us with amputation as the only option, so we amputated above the knee. Her right arm is now in a cast as well. She’s still under the effects of anesthesia as well, but her lungs weren't affected like Roxas’ were, so she doesn't need the ventilator. She’s just got a breathing mask on now. If you’d like to go see the baby, let one of the nurses know and they’ll take you.”

As before, Doctor Evans excused himself, this time to check on other patients. Riku was torn… should he stay with his girlfriend until she woke up? Or should he go see their… son? He stood in the hallway, not sure at all where he should go. When he didn't immediately follow them in, Cloud turned back around, seeing Riku obviously stunned.

“Riku,” Cloud said. Riku looked at the blonde. “You've got your phone on you right?” At Riku’s nod, he continued, “Go be with your son. We’ll call you if she wakes up. But your son needs you more right now.”

“Thank you,” Riku seemed grateful to have someone make his mind up for him. He hugged Cloud briefly before walking to the nurses’ station to be taken to the NICU. Cloud was momentarily taken aback. After the initial shock, he joined Tifa and sat with her on the window seat. They were solemn and quiet. Cloud was sitting with Tifa between his legs, stretched out on the small bench. She reclined against him, and he stroked her arm in an effort to relax her. They were in for a long night.

 

~o~

 

Riku followed a brunette nurse, whose name was Aerith, to the NICU. He understood the reason for moving Roxas to this floor; not only so he could be in the same room as his sister, but so anyone visiting them could also visit the NICU, which was on the third floor. He didn't know what to expect. He and Naminé had discussed names, but they hadn't decided on one yet.

Aerith asked the new father, “Is yours the new arrival?"

He looked at her kind green eyes, nodding. She commented, “He seems like a fighter. I've got a good feeling about him. Don’t be too shocked by all the equipment he’s hooked up to; we've got a small feeding tube leading to his stomach through his nose, an IV for steroids to help his lungs develop faster, and a ventilator since he can’t breathe on his own yet.” Aerith led Riku to one of the incubators in the mostly dark room, and Riku – though not affected by the sight of the tubes and machines – was surprised at just how little the baby was.

The baby’s incubator had some information on the end of it, listing him at 14 inches long and weighing just 2 pounds and 6 ounces. Aerith stood at the end of the incubator, ready to add at least a last name to the information. “Is he going to have your last name?”

“Yes. Shibuya.” Riku told the nurse, listening to her pen _scritch-scratch_ on the paper as she listed his last name on the paper. “I’ll leave you to have some bonding time then. I’m sorry about the circumstances of his birth though,” Aerith said, referencing Naminé.

“Thank you.” She walked away then, leaving Riku to sit with his son. He and Naminé had wanted the gender to be a surprise, but he had been positive that Naminé would have a girl. He smiled sadly down at the tiny baby.

“Hey there, kiddo. You’re going to hang on until your mommy gets to meet you, right? She’ll be so happy to know you’re alright. You’ll be able to help her recover faster, especially since your uncle Ven didn't make it through. You’ll be the light she needs to get through everything.” Riku sat in silence after that, occasionally looking out the window as the sky got progressively lighter.

He got a text around four that Roxas had woken up. He sent back a quick reply, asking how he was doing.

 _From: Cloud  
_ _4:03 AM_

_He’s really groggy from the medicine. He doesn't really understand what’s going on yet. Doc is gonna take the tube out of his mouth, but said Roxas will probably be sleeping for a while yet._

Riku replied with a simple ‘ _keep me updated_ ’ and went back to watching his son again. The sun began to rise outside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Despite planning to include Hayner's point of view in this chapter, I didn't quite get to that. I wanted to get this chapter posted though because I'll be in St. Louis till Sunday and I won't have access to my laptop while I'm away. So I figured I'd go ahead and at least get this one up before I left. In the meantime, leave me a comment or something. I wanna know what you guys think so far! I'll get to work on chapter 5 as soon as I get back.
> 
> Fun fact: this is the fastest I've ever updated a multi-chapter story. Ever.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so I added a little reprieve of cuteness to help with all the sadness going on in this chapter. I hope you guys like it!

Around seven in the morning, Naminé was released from the hold of the anesthesia. She was still groggy, but nowhere near how Roxas was when he woke up the first time. Cloud noticed her fluttering her eyes, but could do nothing but stay where he was. Tifa had fallen asleep against his chest in the time that they’d been sitting on the window seat. He hated that he would have to wake her up since he knew that neither of them would be getting much sleep now, but he also knew his wife would kill him if he let her sleep now.

“Tifa,” he spoke lowly, not wanting to startle her. “Tif, hon, time to wake up,” he shook her lightly, “Naminé’s awake.”

Tifa stirred and woke up, a confused expression crossing her face for a moment before she remembered where she was. She got up and stretched before moving over to stand next to her daughter. The tears came back as she said a quiet, “Hi sweetie.”

In the time that Tifa had woken up, Cloud had sent a message to Riku, letting him know that Naminé was awake. A few minutes passed, and another doctor came in to check on the siblings. He said it was a good thing that they’d both woken up from the anesthesia and that they were sure to make excellent progress. The doctor left, and Riku still hadn't shown up.

“Tifa, baby?” He got her attention. “I’m gonna go find Riku.”

“Okay. Be back soon.”

The blonde left the room, asking one of the nurses at the desk to take him to the NICU. When he arrived, he saw why Riku hadn’t come immediately after receiving Cloud’s text. The new father was fast asleep next to the incubator, his hand resting inside through one of the circles cut out of the incubator. What Cloud saw from that though made him tear up a little. The baby had reached out and grabbed the tip of Riku’s pinky finger at some point. The sight pulled at his heartstrings. The blonde snapped a couple pictures on his phone before waking Riku up.

He shook the younger man’s shoulder, making Riku sit up slowly.

“Mr. Strife? What’s going on? Did Naminé wake up?” Cloud nodded.

“She woke up a few minutes ago; I had to come find you because you didn't reply to my text. Although I hate to take you away from your son…” The blonde looked back at the baby’s hand on Riku’s finger. Riku became aware of the tiny hold on him then, gasping.

“Hey there, champ… Look, I don’t want to leave you, but I have to go see your mommy. I promise I’ll be back soon, okay? I love you, little guy. Maybe today we’ll figure out a name for you… Be strong for both of us.” Riku pulled his hand out of the incubator, standing. He looked at Cloud to follow him back to Naminé and Roxas’ room, and Cloud had a small smile on his face. Riku quirked an eyebrow at him.

“You’ll make a great father, Riku.”

“Th-thank you… sir. That means so much to me, especially coming from you.”

Cloud pulled Riku to him in a quick hug, saying, “Welcome to the family… officially.”

Riku was momentarily stunned. Cloud was a normally stoic man, not speaking much, and generally expressionless. This version of Cloud was throwing him off, but he returned the gesture anyway. The two broke apart and Cloud led the way back to Naminé’s room.

By the time the two men arrived back in the room, Naminé appeared more alert and aware of what was going on.

“Riku? What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be in class right now.” Naminé scolded her boyfriend.

“I called the office last night and the person I spoke to left a message with my teacher, excusing me from that test…” Riku was quiet for a moment. “Do you… remember why you’re in the hospital, Nami?” He sat down on the side of her bed, taking her hands in his own.

The blonde shook her head ‘no’ and cringed when she felt the slight pain in her neck.

“You were in an accident, babe. You were on the highway, Roxas was driving, and another car struck you guys… You were hurt pretty bad…” He explained solemnly.

That small explanation was all it took for Naminé’s memory to catch her up, playing back bits and pieces of what had happened up until she blacked out. She frowned, afraid to ask what had happened to Ventus. She couldn't remember.

“Where’s Ven? Why isn't he here with us?” She spoke quietly. She feared the worst when nobody responded. Riku looked away from her then.

“Oh God… Is he…?” Naminé couldn't finish the question. She was met with silence for an answer. “Oh my God, Ven! No!” She began sobbing and Riku hugged her tight, letting her tears soak into his jacket. He didn't know what else to do but let her grieve and cry. He stroked her hair and kissed her temple. She held fast to his arm, and Riku cried with her.

Tifa watched the two of them with a heavy heart. She sniffled, and Cloud wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Let’s give them a little bit of privacy,” he said. Tifa nodded and allowed herself to be pulled from the room. As they entered the hallway, Ansem came over.

“I heard you have a new addition now, to your family. I wanted to come say congratulations.”

“Thank you, Doctor Wise…” Cloud trailed off.

“It’s my pleasure. Are you two free for the moment?” He asked the parents.

They looked at each other, knowing what he was _really_ asking. If they could go ID Ven and fill out the paperwork for his death certificate and funeral arrangements. Tifa nodded, saying, “Yes.”

“Follow me then, please.” He took them to the elevator and pushed the button for the basement floor, where the morgue was located. The couple tried to prepare themselves, not really knowing what to expect. Ansem had them stand in front of a large window that had a white curtain blocking the other side. He pressed a button on an intercom-like system that allowed him to speak with whomever was on the other side of the window.

“Zexion, I've brought the parents for identification. Please remove the curtain from the viewing window.” The light on the intercom system went off, and the white curtain was pulled back, revealing a rather short man that Cloud assumed was the medical examiner. He had slate gray hair and black metal-rimmed glasses. His hair was long in the front, but it was stuck behind his ear.

Zexion moved away from the window and towards the metal table in the middle of the room. He grabbed the edges of the white sheet covering the body and looked up, as if asking, ‘Are they ready?’ Ansem nodded. Zexion pulled the sheet back far enough to expose the bare shoulders of the body.

Tifa stared and stared, eyes welling up with more tears, the salty water escaping and leaving tracks down her cheeks. “Oh, Ven…” She put her hand up to the window and blinked hard, trying to rid her eyes of the excess moisture. Cloud’s hand fit over hers as he silently let his own tears fall. The blonde looked at Ansem, and nodded, confirming that this was their son.

Tifa looked away then, not able to bear the sight of her youngest son’s body lying on a cold metal table, knowing that he was dead. She turned around and buried her face into Cloud’s chest. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight against himself. Zexion needed no instructions and pulled the sheet back up to cover Ven’s body. He closed the curtain, and Ansem looked at the grieving couple with a sad expression on his face.

“I’m sorry for your loss, Mr. and Mrs. Strife. And I’m sorry that you had to do this. Unfortunately, it’s necessary when we have someone who dies before paramedics arrive… Please, come to my office with me. I’ll help you get started on the paperwork.” He began to lead them back upstairs to go to his office.

Cloud sent a text to Riku to let him know that they would be back after a while, that they were filling out paperwork and making arrangements for Ven’s funeral. 

_From: Riku  
_ _7:48 AM_

_You guys take your time with that. I know it’s hard, and I can’t begin to imagine what you’re going through, but don’t feel like you have to rush. Nam’s gone back to sleep because she exhausted herself crying. Roxas is still asleep, so nothing new happening. Stay strong._

Cloud took the words of encouragement to his heart, knowing he would need them. Planning for a child’s funeral is something no parent should ever have to do, and the blonde didn't know how hard it would be for him and Tifa, especially with the overwhelming emotions they’d been experiencing over the last several hours. Grief, because of Ven, and the circumstances surrounding Roxas and Naminé. Happiness that the two older siblings were still alive. Joy and worry for Naminé’s baby. Anger at the other driver… It was exhausting trying to keep it all in check.

~o~ 

In another single patient room on the second floor, Hayner was being woken up again by his doctor. The doctors and nurses said he had a concussion and that he was lucky he wasn’t more seriously injured. He didn't feel lucky though. He’d heard the announcement of one of the people in the car he hit being DOA when he was on his way to the hospital in the ambulance. He’d killed someone because of his reckless behavior, and he had no idea how bad the other people in the car were.

He didn't know how Pence was either. He remembered seeing the chubby brunette unconscious in the seat beside him, bleeding from his temple. And then he’d blacked out and woken up again in the ambulance. The hospital called his mom who ended up calling Olette, both of whom came to visit him immediately. When they’d asked him what happened, he was overwhelmed with guilt and regret for his decisions.

He’d choked out what he could remember happening, bursting into tears halfway through his explanation. When he told them why the crash had happened, why he’d been in the other lane, he wasn’t expecting the silence. He was expecting the slap that came from Olette across his cheek. He was also expecting the yelling that came afterwards. He agreed with what Olette was saying. How could he have been so stupid? So irresponsible? Olette had stormed out of the room and left the hospital, wanting to cool down before going to see Pence. His mom sat there quietly. The only words she said were, “I’m so disappointed in you.” She left too.

In his room, Hayner curled into the fetal position on his bed. He screamed and cried until he finally fell back asleep, seeing the word ‘killer’ all over his mind in a dream.

~o~ 

Around ten thirty, Naminé woke back up, seeing Riku at her side. She thought back to what he’d told her about Ven, and her heart shattered. A piece of her died with him and nothing would be able to ever completely fill that void again. But she had Roxas still, and her parents. She had Riku, and her baby… _My baby!_ She sat up quickly with that thought, but slid back down when she could only feel one foot pushing up against the mattress.

Her movements woke Riku up, and he could see how quickly she was upsetting herself again.

“Nami, hey.”

His words broke her out of the trap her mind had put her in.

“Riku!” She didn't understand what had happened. She clutched onto him and he whispered kind words into her ear in an effort to calm her down some.

“Listen, Nam, I gotta get the doctor in here so he can tell you what happened after you got here, okay?” She nodded. About that time, Roxas stirred on his bed. Riku went out to the hallway to get a nurse so that the doctor could be paged. He sent a text to Cloud, letting him and Tifa know what was going on. Cloud replied, saying that they were almost done with the paperwork and would be back shortly.

He entered the room again, seeing Roxas finally waking up. Riku knew that he’d have a lot to process. He pulled the oxygen mask off of his face that had replaced the ventilator tube when he’d woken up from anesthesia earlier. His throat was sore, and he sounded hoarse as he asked, “What happened?”

“You’re in the hospital, Roxas. I’ll let the doctor explain why. It’s a lot to try to understand right now, and you’ll want to have all your questions answered with him, I’m sure,” Riku explained.

Just then, the doctor knocked on the door, stepping through into the room. He had long white-blond hair and very tan skin. His eyes were a golden amber color; his most prominent feature. When he spoke, his voice seemed to resonate within the room.

“Good morning, Roxas, Naminé,” he said, nodding to each sibling in turn. “I’m Doctor King. I’ll be your main doctor during the daytime. I’m glad to see that both of you are awake now. Do you both know why you’re here?” He looked at the two blondes. Naminé nodded, but Roxas shook his head.

“Roxas,” the doctor looked at him. “You were driving and got into an accident. Another driver struck your vehicle and caused some severe injuries. You may have noticed that your left arm is in a sling. That’s because it got fractured in three places. You've got some whiplash as well, which is to be expected with any car crash. However, the most serious injury you sustained was to your spinal cord.” Doctor King was silent then.

“I remember the paramedic saying that when they were trying to get me out of the car…” Roxas trailed off.

“The injury caused paralysis, Roxas.” The blonde’s eyes went wide.

“W-what? I’m… paralyzed?” Roxas didn't know what to think. “Do I have any chance of walking ever again?”

“Less than a five percent chance, I’m afraid. You’re going to have no feeling in your legs for quite some time; at least six months. After that, you may experience some tingling sensations, similar to when a limb goes to sleep. It might start to get painful when that happens, so after some time, we’ll prescribe something for the pain.”

The blonde was stunned to silence. He’d have to live the rest of his life in a wheelchair. He’d always need someone else to take care of him. His life was forever changed, and he couldn't do anything about it.

Doctor King turned to Naminé to resume speaking. “Naminé, you suffered severe injuries as well. Like Roxas, you have whiplash, and your right arm was broken in two places. Your right leg was so tangled up in the car that it caused irreparable damage, and forced us to amputate above your knee.” Naminé gasped at that. “There is good news though, and that’s that you can be fitted for a prosthetic leg after your arm heals, and you’ll be able to walk normally with the help of some physical therapy.”

Riku held onto her hand, twining their fingers.

“And what about my baby?” She asked.

“When you got here, we found some internal bleeding that was putting pressure on your uterus. We performed an emergency C-Section to save you and your child. He’s receiving care in the NICU right now.”

“It’s a boy? We have a son?” Tears came to her eyes. “Can I see him?”

“I’ll see if I can get a wheelchair brought in for you,” Doctor King said. “For right now, though, I’m sure you both are hungry. Would you like to eat?”

Naminé’s stomach growled at the thought of food. Roxas shook his head, however. He didn't feel like eating anything.

“I’ll have a nurse bring some food by for you. Let me just check your vitals before I take my leave.” Doctor King picked up the clipboard at the end of Naminé’s bed, bringing it with him as he pulled in a small machine from the hallway. The machine looked to be connected to a blood pressure cuff and a small tray below the monitor held a thermometer.

Naminé offered her arm to the doctor, allowing him to wrap the cuff around it. He turned the monitor on, letting the cuff fill with air while he placed the oxygen-saturation probe on her finger. As the monitor was measuring her vital signs, Doctor King ran the thermometer across her forehead. He marked down the temperature on her chart, waiting for the monitor to finish its reading. When the cuff began to deflate itself, he wrote those results down as well. He removed the cuff and probe only to repeat the process with Roxas.

“Alright, I’ll have some food brought up along with a wheelchair. I’ll be back in a while to check on you again.” With that, Doctor King left the room.

A few minutes after he left, Cloud and Tifa came back to the room, both teary-eyed. Riku moved out of the way as Tifa came over to Naminé and hugged her. When she moved to hug Roxas, Cloud came over and hugged her as well. He followed after his wife and gave a hug to his son too.

“I’m so glad you’re both awake now,” Tifa said. Before she could say much else, everyone heard a ‘knock-knock’ from the doorway. In came Yuffie, carrying coffee and a plastic bag with some clothes for Tifa.

“Hey everyone,” Yuffie said, looking over at Roxas. She could tell he was slipping into depression, and fast. “Hi Roxas,” she spoke softly, handing off the items she brought to Cloud.

“Hi Mrs. V.” He sounded so heartbroken. Yuffie’s heart went out to him.

“How are you feeling?” She asked him.

“Like hell,” he said, voice cracking as he struggled not to cry.

Yuffie frowned, not at all sure how to help him. She pulled him into a hug and he squeezed his eyes shut, feeling the tears leak. Cloud, Tifa, Riku, and Naminé were carrying on a conversation on the other side of the room.

“I told this to your parents, but if there’s anything I can help you with, Roxas, you be sure to let me know. Whatever it is. I know how close you are to Axel, and I’ve come to love you like my own son, and I want to help you in any way I can. Okay?”

“Okay,” Roxas nodded. Yuffie squeezed him again and let go.

“If the hospital staff say it’s okay, would you feel up to seeing Axel today after he gets out of school?”

Roxas cracked a small smile at that, saying, “Yea, definitely.” The black-haired woman winked at him then, standing.

She walked over to where Tifa was standing, next to Naminé’s bed and hugged the other woman. Tifa was acting strong, but everyone could tell how much the death of her youngest son was affecting her. Her eyes seemed distant, and her entire demeanor was subdued. And that was saying a lot for Tifa. Yuffie pulled her out the door so they could go take a walk and talk.

Cloud announced he would be back after a little while; that he was going to go home and shower, and then work on trying to make things at the house easier for the siblings to get around.

Naminé suggested that Riku go home and take a shower as well to refresh himself since he’d been there all night. He kissed her cheek, saying a quick ‘I love you’ before heading out.

A nurse came in a few minutes after the room cleared out to bring food for both of them, despite Roxas saying he wasn't hungry. While she was there, Roxas decided to ask whether he could have visitors outside of his family.

“Well, you’re not contagious with anything. So long as you feel up to it, then yes. But don’t have too many people here at one time. The doctors and other nurses will still need to get in here to do vitals checks on both you and your sister. Sound fair?”

Roxas nodded, and the nurse said she would be back after they ate and would bring a wheelchair for Naminé so she could go see her baby. While she dug into her food, Roxas thought about his little brother. He couldn't help but think how much he was going to need his best friend now more than ever before to get him through the loss he was feeling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry this chapter took me so long! I didn't get back home from St. Louis until Sunday night/Monday morning and ended up staying up till about 6 that morning and then sleeping until 4:30. Oops. Anyway, I had lots of fun up there, and I got to spend some quality time with family that I only get to see around the holidays and let me just say, my baby cousins are SO STINKING CUTE. (: Another of my cousins graduated from high school on Friday, and we got to see him too. Oh, and I went to a Cardinals game while I was there. Even though they lost, it was a good game and I enjoyed myself thoroughly.
> 
> Anyway, I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, which just so happens to be the longest chapter thus far! Whoo!
> 
> EDIT: Just wanted to say that this chapter was posted on the three year anniversary of the tornado that destroyed more than half of my hometown. You can see what I'm talking about here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0lkd3JQjOs


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, this time around, we get to see some of Riku's thoughts, Sora and Kairi are introduced and visit Naminé briefly, and Naminé also gets to visit her son. She also names him!

Naminé sat back in her bed, trying to get used to the feeling of _not_ feeling in her right leg. She was in some discomfort, despite her access to strong pain medications like morphine, but she was determined to not use any unless her pain became absolutely unbearable. She noticed that Roxas hadn't touched the white Styrofoam box their lunches had been brought in, and she wondered how he was coping. There was so much to take in. So much that had happened… Naminé knew she’d be okay in the end, because she had Riku and her baby, their friends, and she was so close with their parents, but she was worried about her little brother. He really only had his best friend, despite what Yuffie may have said earlier. She felt a little guilty that she wasn't closer with Roxas and was determined to fix it.

“Roxas?” She spoke up.

He looked up at her, as though only just remembering that she was there.

“How are you holding up?” She had a small frown on her face, and immediately Roxas thought that it didn't suit her delicate features.

“I’m… I’m kinda just numb to everything right now, Nam… I don’t… I don’t know how to process any of it.” His voice was void of emotion. The older sibling’s heart broke.

“I don’t really know what to tell you, Roxas, other than that… well, I’m here. Through everything, I’m here. And I know that’s going to get old, hearing that phrase, but it’s the best I can come up with. I’m just thankful you’re still here with me.”

“I know, Nam… I just… I don’t understand it. I mean… Why _Ven_? Why did it have to be him and not me?”

“Roxas…”

“His life was only just beginning for God’s sake! He was only ten… Between us all, it should have been me…” Roxas sobbed. Tears welled in his sister’s eyes. She realized he was facing the mountain of survivor’s guilt. Some of the cases she’d studied in her medical classes, before getting pregnant, mentioned it and she knew it was a hard road, and for someone as young as Roxas… It was going to be struggle for him just to live from day to day.

She knew that everyone involved would have to have some serious therapy and counseling to work through all the emotions and feelings and absolute grief. And despite Naminé’s calm outward appearance, internally she was at war with herself. She wanted so bad to just be happy that she was alive, that her baby was alive, but how could she be when her baby brother’s life had ended so abruptly? She knew he would want her to be happy, but there was nothing joyous about another’s life being taken so suddenly.

The siblings sat in silence for a while then, each contemplating how on earth they were going to move past this tragedy.

~o~

Riku was a little glad his girlfriend had dismissed him, because dear lord, he _reeked_. He hadn't had much of a chance to shower within the last two days between studying for his test and then staying at the hospital. He stripped off his clothing when he got into his bedroom, grabbing a clean pair of boxers and a towel before stepping into the bathroom.

He turned the water on, letting it get warm before easing himself into the spray. He let the water soak into his muscles, taking a deep breath and letting it out, feeling himself relax. He wondered how the baby was doing right now, if anything had changed in the time that he’d been gone. His thoughts shifted to Naminé as he set about washing himself and ridding himself of the odor that clung to him like a second skin.

As the water washed the suds away down the drain, Riku got a small amount of shampoo, lathering it into his long, silver hair. He still couldn't completely wrap his brain around the idea that he now had his own small family. He’d had a plan for a romantic evening with Naminé today, after he got out of his test. Just spending the day with her, maybe even getting the essential furniture his best friend had helped him find for cheap on craigslist – Sora was a godsend when it came to that site. After setting up the nursery with Naminé’s instruction, he’d wanted to take her out to a nice restaurant and finally ask the question he’d been building up the courage to ask since he first learned she was pregnant with their child.

And hell, it was about time he did too – they’d been dating for more than two years now. But after getting a phone call from a very frantic Cloud, to meet him and Tifa at the hospital because Naminé was in an accident, he was frazzled and his nerves were shot. And learning everything he had about said accident, he knew he’d have to wait because if he asked Naminé to marry him right now, how inappropriate would that be? Her youngest brother was dead, and she and her other brother were seriously injured, and his own child had been born prematurely because of the injuries his girlfriend sustained. He wanted to wait until some time had passed, because he wanted the moment to be right.

Sora’s girlfriend Kairi had helped him pick out the perfect ring as well when Riku revealed his intentions. She’d asked Naminé if she could borrow one of the blonde’s rings – Naminé only wore them on her ring fingers, which were both the same size – and had given it to Riku to take with him so he knew what size ring to purchase. The redhead mentioned Naminé’s love of the rose gold metal, and that little nudge was enough to allow Riku to find the right ring. It was the pinkish metal of course, and a large round diamond sat on top, with both sides of the band boasting infinity symbols made of smaller round diamonds. Kairi had squealed when she saw it, so Riku knew it was perfect then.

The box said ring was in was still sitting in his dresser, hidden under a row of socks in case Naminé suspected anything and snooped. Riku sighed. When would be the right moment after all this? The water began to run cold, pulling him from his thoughts. He heard the front door close, and he hurried to at least get his towel around him after shutting the water off. He figured it was his best friend, coming to check on him. After all, the class he’d had a test in today, Sora was in as well.

“Riku? You there?” Sora called from the hallway.

“In the bathroom, Sor!” He hollered back, drying off and slipping on his boxers. The footsteps in the hallway got a little louder as the brunette stopped outside of the bathroom door.

“Where were you, Ri? Did you forget about the test and sleep in or something?” He was asking as the door opened, the steam built up hitting Sora square in the face. He stepped back a little, allowing the vapor to empty into the hallway.

Riku moved to his bedroom, pulling out a fresh pair of jeans, a black t-shirt with some kind of yellow logo, and a clean pair of socks. After he was dressed, he sprayed some Axe – the kind Naminé bought for him – and pulled his beat up black Converse on again.

“No, I didn't forget it. I called the office last night and was given a pardon from it…” he trailed off.

“A pardon? What happened?” Sora knew they didn't just hand out pardons left and right.

Riku sighed before jumping into an explanation, telling Sora what had happened the night before, explaining Ven’s death, a rundown of the injuries the siblings had, as well as his son’s birth.

By the end of the explanation, Sora’s mouth was wide open. Riku had to physically close the brunette’s mouth for him. To say Sora was speechless was an understatement. A few minutes passed in silence afterward. Then finally, Sora spoke again.

“So… you seem to be taking this exceptionally well…”

“I have to, Sor. My girlfriend’s entire world is now completely different and I have to be there for her. Her family too. And I need to be strong for my son…” Riku trailed off.

“Speaking of him, does he have a name? I know you and Naminé were discussing ideas for names, but did you ever decide on one?”

“No, we never officially decided. I need to talk it over with her today, when she goes to visit him. And that might be happening soon, so I should probably get back to the hospital. But do you think you could do me a favor?” The silver-haired man asked.

“Yea, sure. Whatever you need,” Sora replied.

“Would you and Kairi be able to go and pick up the furniture for the nursery and get it assembled for me? I know we won’t be bringing the baby home for a while, but having that stuff already taken care of would help me out a lot.”

“Yea, sure. I might see if Tidus can help me out too. Some of the stuff is probably going to be pretty heavy and I don’t know if Kairi would be able to lift it.”

“Thanks so much, Sora. If you want, you can ride with me to the hospital and pop in to see her and take my car to go pick everything up. I’m sure it can hold it all better than your car since the trunk space is so much bigger. And that way, you’re not using your gas.”

“Sounds good. Though I don’t want to see Naminé without Kairi being there too. Think we could pick her up along the way? She should be getting out of class right now.”

“That’s fine. Thank you again. That’s gonna be such a major help right now.

“No thanks necessary, Ri. I mean, I’m your best friend. What am I gonna do, say no?” Sora pulled Riku into a hug, and he could feel how weary the silver-haired man was. The brunette felt so bad for him; how on earth could anyone be expected to deal with the particular shit-storm life had thrown out for the Strife family, and for Riku?

As the two separated, Riku reached for a small hair-tie and pulled his still wet hair into a loose ponytail, some of the strands still hanging down around his face. He took a deep breath, letting all of his stress momentarily disappear with the air he breathed out. He grabbed his keys from the spot on his nightstand where he always put them when he got home and said, “Let’s go.” Sora followed him wordlessly out the door, locking it behind him.

He slid into the passenger seat, pulling out his cell phone to text Kairi and let her know that they were going to be picking her up. The drive to Kingdom University where the childhood friends all went to school was mostly quiet, the only noises coming from the hushed purr of the engine and the tires against the pavement. Riku pulled his charcoal gray Pontiac Torrent up in front of the student center, where Kairi said she would be waiting. Within moments, the redhead emerged. She was wearing a black tank top with a decorative rhinestone cross, a green and black plaid skirt, and flip-flops, perfect for the summery temperatures Traverse Town was experiencing.

Sora got out of the car and walked around to the driver’s side of the vehicle, opening the door in the back for her. He gave her a quick peck on the lips and hurried back around to get in the front again. Kairi spoke as Riku pulled away from the university and towards the hospital on the other end of town.

“Hey guys. What’s going on? Did we have plans that I forgot about?” Riku let Sora do the talking.

“No, nothing like that, Kai… You know how Naminé just randomly stopped texting you last night?” She nodded.

“She was in an accident with her brothers and another driver. She’s in the hospital with some pretty bad injuries, but she’s awake. And uh… she had her baby too. So we’re going to go see her for a few minutes, but Riku wanted us to go get the baby furniture he got on craigslist and put it together for him.” Sora left out the part about Ven dying, but Riku didn't really notice. He was concentrating on the road. Kairi didn't say anything, and the atmosphere in the car was somber. The rest of the ride to the hospital was quiet.

When they arrived, Sora took Kairi’s hand, twining their fingers as Riku led the way to Naminé and Roxas’ room. The silver-haired man asked them to stay in the hallway while he asked Naminé if she would be okay to have them in. They stood patiently, knowing her injuries, but not knowing what to expect when they actually saw her. Riku came out and told them it was okay for them to come in. He went back through the doorway, not waiting for them.

“You ready, Kai?” Sora asked, taking a deep breath and hoping he didn't start to stare at the blonde.

“Yea. I’m good,” the redhead replied. Sora nodded and pulled her gently along into the overly white room. Kairi immediately detached herself from her boyfriend and ran over to her best friend, hugging her tightly with tears in her eyes.

“Oh, Naminé! I’m so glad you’re alright! I mean… for the most part, and you’re gonna be okay in the long run and… I should probably stop talking,” Kairi bowed her head down, embarrassed.

Naminé giggled at the redhead and held her as she said, “Kai, it’s alright. And yes, I will be okay in due time. After all, I have a precious baby boy now to look after, and… being a mother will help me deal with everything that happened.” The blonde became misty-eyed as she spoke. “And the doctor told me I can be fitted for a prosthetic leg once my arm heals enough. I know physical therapy is going to be really difficult, which is why he’s holding off until my arm is healed… I think, anyway.”

Kairi pulled away from the embrace and moved so Sora could hug the blonde. He said quietly, “It’s good to see you, Nami.” He squeezed her briefly before pulling back and moving to sit in one of the room’s chairs. Riku sat next to him while Kairi stayed seated on the side of the blonde’s bed.

Naminé glanced over at her brother, who appeared to be sleeping. She sighed, frowning.

“Guys, I’m really worried about Roxas… We were talking earlier, after everyone left, and he was saying stuff like ‘why couldn't it have been me instead of Ven’ and ‘it should have been me’ and I don’t know how to help him.”

Kairi’s brows furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean, him instead of Ven?”

Naminé sagged as she said, “He died in the accident…” Kairi gasped. The Strifes were basically her other family since she and Naminé had been best friends since childhood, so this was a major blow to her as well.

She cried for the loss she knew the blondes were feeling, and for the hole she felt in her heart, knowing now that the boy who could have been her own little brother was gone. “I’m so sorry, Nami…”

“Thanks, Kai…” Naminé trailed off, sniffling a little. “There’s nothing I can do for Ventus now, but if I can help Roxas, somehow, I want to… I just don’t know what to do for him. I mean, survivor’s guilt is one of the worst things to deal with. It can be such a mental roadblock, and he’s already going to have plenty of those in his daily life because he’s bound to a wheelchair for as long as he lives…” The blonde’s heart broke for her younger brother. She couldn't even imagine going through what he was going through; never being able to walk again would be so horrible, and Naminé was thankful she still had the chance to do so, even if it would be with an artificial leg.

Riku came over to her, sitting on the opposite side of the bed as Kairi, and squeezed her hand. He said, “I don’t think there’s anything you _can_ do for him, babe. As much as I hate to say that, I think that’s something he’ll have to work through in therapy and counseling, to deal with on his own terms. But if you can be there for him, then that’ll help him out.”

“I guess you’re right… I just, I feel like I should be able to do more than that for him. I’m his big sister; I’m supposed to protect him and look out for him…”

Riku lifted her face to look at him, stroking his thumb across her cheek as he leaned in and kissed her softly. Naminé responded to him, grasping the hand holding her face. She felt Riku pull back from the kiss, and he rested his forehead against hers. They stayed that way for a moment longer, having a silent conversation with each other as they studied the depths of the others eyes.

Sora cleared his throat, feeling the air become a little awkward with him and Kairi still in the room. The other couple broke from their trance and Riku apologized.

“It’s cool man, I was just gonna say that I think Kairi and I are gonna head out.”

“Before you go,” Naminé said, “can I ask you guys something?”

“Sure, Nam, what is it?” Kairi said, going to stand next to the brunette.

Naminé looked to Riku, who nodded. “This is something that Riku and I have talked about before, when I had just learned I was pregnant, and we were going to wait until the baby got here to ask you but… Would you be his godparents?”

That seemed to stun Sora and Kairi. It was a few minutes before they spoke, and even then, it was only to each other. They were discussing whether or not they’d be able raise a child on their own. Finally, Kairi spoke up.

“We’d be honored, Naminé. I hope that nothing ever happens where we have to act on that, but we’ve got your back.”

The blonde smiled, saying, “Thank you so much!” Riku had his arm around her shoulders and a small smile gracing his features. He dug in his pocket for his keys, handing them over to the brunette.

“We’ll see you guys around,” Sora said as he took Kairi’s hand, leading her from the room.

Naminé snuggled into Riku’s side as he stretched out on the bed beside her, thankful to have his two best friends there for him and Naminé. They sat that way for a few minutes, just enjoying each other’s company, when the nurse who brought the food in came back in with a wheelchair.

“Are you ready to go see your son?”

Naminé’s eyes lit up like the fourth of July at that one question as she nodded emphatically.

The nurse and Riku helped her get situated in the wheelchair and Riku pushed her from the room, following the nurse to the NICU.

“Until his lungs are fully developed, we've got him on a ventilator and we have a feeding tube in his nose, as well as an IV for steroids, to help him develop faster; so don’t be upset when you see all the machines he’s hooked up to, okay?” The nurse spoke to Naminé. Riku already knew from his first visit. Naminé nodded and the nurse walked away, trusting Riku to show the blonde which incubator their son was in.

“What I wasn't told before seeing him was just how tiny he is, Nam. He’s two and a half pounds,” Riku said to her.

“Okay… I’m ready to see him though.” Riku pushed her through the doorway and over to the incubator marked with “Shibuya” on the end. As they came closer, Naminé could see what both the nurse and Riku meant. There was a lot that the tiny baby was hooked up to, but she knew it was necessary for his survival, so she put that out of her mind.

The blonde smiled when she took in the sight of her son, though, happy he was alive and looking to be doing well for being premature. She decided on his name right then. “Hi Joshua,” she said, putting her left hand into the incubator through the circular cutout. Her finger was almost as long as his entire arm as she lightly ran it over his tiny, balled up hand.

“What’s his middle name, Nami?” Riku asked, still standing behind her, taking in the moment.

“Ventus,” she said. “Joshua Ventus Shibuya.” Riku smiled, watching as Joshua uncurled his hand long enough to wrap his little fingers around the tip of Naminé’s finger, just like he had with Riku earlier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG GUYS! Shortly after posting chapter 5, my laptop decided to freeze on me multiple times and I wasn't able to start this chapter before it did that. So I had to take it to Best Buy and ended up paying over $350 for the Geek Squad year long tech support plan, as well as an external hard drive for them to back my computer up onto. It sat at the store for two days. After I got my laptop back (which they were thankfully able to fix for me), I immediately started this chapter, but between both of my jobs, I just didn't have much time to write. And then over the weekend, my aunt and uncle came to visit, along with my cousin Makenna (who is almost 3 now, holy cow!) and I spent quite a bit of time with them too, between working.
> 
> Anyway! I don't know how many of you guys have played KH3D, but if you have, you'll remember the character Joshua from The World Ends With You. Let me just say, I'd planned on naming the baby Joshua since the beginning. When I came up with Riku's last name, it was pretty much on the spot. Over the weekend, I was catching myself up with everything in the series, thanks to several YouTube videos as well as the kh-info-block on Tumblr, and when it mentioned the characters from TWEWY, it also mentioned their home world: SHIBUYA. Let me just say, I was astounded by my own brilliance, because I promise you that coincidence was completely unplanned.
> 
> So anyways, let me know what you think so far! Also, next chapter, Axel gets to see Roxas for the first time since the accident. That'll be fun to write! I can't wait to see your comments and thoughts on everything. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! ^^


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of stuff happens in this chapter... Also, as you get towards the end, I recommend having a tissue nearby. I cried while I wrote it. (Also, happy AkuRoku Day~!)
> 
> By the way, there is a religious overtone at the end, so I hope that doesn't offend you! And during that scene, I strongly recommend listening to Avril Lavigne's "Slipped Away" so that you can really get a feel for it.

As Naminé was spending time visiting with her child, Hayner was told he was being discharged, but because of the circumstances surrounding his stay overnight, he was being released into police custody instead of his mother’s. If everything that had happened hadn’t felt real before, it sure as hell did _now_. Hayner grew withdrawn as the doctor explained that situation. His mother was called, since Hayner was still a minor, but she didn’t come to stay with him as he waited for the police to show up. Olette still wasn’t talking to him either. He felt completely alone, and his self-loathing increased.

Security personnel stayed stationed outside of his room with the door closed to make sure he didn’t try to leave. He couldn’t even if he wanted to; not with how guilty he felt. He knew he screwed up big time, and despite trying to get out of taking responsibility for his actions in the past, Hayner knew he couldn’t run from this. He knew he’d be headed to jail today, possibly going before a judge and having his bail set as well.

There was a quick rapping at the door, before Hayner’s doctor led the police into the room, letting them know that he’d have to come back to the hospital if he started exhibiting any signs of brain trauma. The doctor listed those off, but Hayner wasn’t really paying attention. As soon as he saw the doctor leave the room, he stood.

“Hayner Leif, you are under arrest for the death of Ventus Strife. Put your hands behind your back.” Everything in Hayner’s body became numb. He knew exactly who Ventus was… Once upon a time, Hayner had been best friends with Ventus’ older brother Roxas. But the two drifted apart when high school started because of different interests. But now… Of all people to hit – to _kill_ – it had been someone he was once friends with? Hayner felt like the wind had been knocked out of him.

Struggling to even stand upright, he somehow managed to say, “May I please go to see my friend Pence before you take me? Please? I have to apologize to him…” The dirty-blonde’s eyes filled with tears as he spoke, his voice quivering. He looked down at the floor, the tears dripping onto the white tile at his feet. The officers standing there, who were ready to handcuff him, looked at him briefly, and then at each other. They could tell Hayner was feeling genuinely remorseful and decided that letting him see his friend one last time wouldn’t hurt.

“We’ll take you to see him. You won’t be able to stay very long because we have to get you to the jail soon, but five minutes won’t make a huge difference. We’ll escort you there and when you’re ready to leave, we’ll have to handcuff you. You understand, right?” Hayner nodded, at least grateful for the opportunity to apologize to Pence and say his farewell; he was certain that he would never see Pence again unless the brunette chose to visit him in prison. He highly doubted that would happen.

The two officers each had a hand on Hayner’s arms, making sure he wouldn’t run – though it was mostly for show. They took him to the desk located just outside his room and asked where Pence was being kept. They explained the situation to the nurses, and the nurses said he was in the ICU, room 417. The officers said a quick thanks and led Hayner to the elevator, to go to the fourth floor where the ICU was located.

They boarded and rode up two floors, and exited the elevator. Signs pointing to the left showed that rooms 400 through 430 would be that way, and they weaved their way through the various hallways until they reached Pence’s room. They stepped through the glass doorway, staying in the room with Hayner should he try to do something. Again, it was for show.

Hayner stood there when the officers let his arms go, not at all sure what to do. He’d had no idea that his friend was still unconscious. Pence was hooked up to a ventilator, a heart rate monitor, a catheter, and had an IV for fluids. He had thick, white bandages wrapped around his head from where Hayner remembered seeing blood on the brunette’s temple.

“Oh God, Pence… I’m so sorry!” Hayner sobbed at his comatose friend. He walked over to the chubby brunette, only to fall to his knees beside the bed. He grasped Pence’s hand in his own. Hayner struggled to speak around the knot forming in his throat, “I know I don’t deserve it, Pence, but I’m asking for your forgiveness… I never meant for this to happen; I’m sorry…” He trailed off, tears streaming continuously down his cheeks. He kept muttering ‘I’m sorry,’ chanting it over and over again. He had no idea if Pence could even hear him.

“I hope you wake up soon, Pence… Someone has to look out for Olette for me, and I… I know you two will be okay if you’re the one to do that, but please, wake up… I couldn’t live knowing I ended _two_ lives because of my actions… So please, buddy. Wake up for me…” The dirty blonde’s voice broke as he got to his feet, and leaned over the unconscious brunette, giving him a brief hug for what seemed like the last time. His tears stained the pillowcase behind Pence’s head as he cried for his friend.

The officers watched with heavy hearts as the scene played out before them. One of them cleared his throat, gently letting Hayner know it was time to leave. As Hayner stood to full height again, he said one last time, “I’m so sorry for everything Pence. I’m sorry….”

The officer who cleared his throat came over, putting a hand on Hayner’s shoulder to pull him away from the bed. Before they left the room, they handcuffed Hayner, escorting him back the way they came, down to the first floor’s emergency bay and putting him in the backseat of their squad car, buckling him in for the ride. Hayner openly wept the entire way to the jail, doing nothing to stop his mourning tears. As he was brought into the building, he couldn’t help but think that the sun shining brightly above him in the too blue sky didn’t belong there today, and the doors slammed shut behind him.

 

~o~

 

For Axel, time couldn’t pass by fast enough. He was itching to leave school ever since his mom had sent him the text that Roxas wanted to see him. But it was only a quarter to noon! He still had almost _four_ hours. He was hoping his classes after lunch would fly by like they tended to do, so he could get the hell out of this building and go see his best friend. All he was waiting for now was the–

_BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP_

–bell. Why did they even call it a bell anymore? It sounded like an alarm clock more than a bell.

The random thoughts continued to plague Axel’s mind as he moved almost mechanically down the hallway to the cafeteria for first lunch. And after lunch would be anatomy; they were late enough in the semester to start their dissection unit, and this was the day that the cats would be chosen by the various groups in the class, to start dissecting within the next couple days.

Axel had been paired with Roxas and their mutual friend from middle school, Demyx. The sandy-blonde was waiting for Axel at the doors leading to the cafeteria where they would trudge through the line together and stuff their faces with about ten minutes till class started. The line’s length didn’t allow for any more time.

While standing in line, Demyx finally spoke up when he realized Roxas wasn’t with Axel and hadn’t shown up yet.

“Hey, where’s Roxas at? Normally you guys come to lunch together,” he said, confusion lacing his voice. Axel felt a pang in his chest and realized he missed his best friend, despite the fact that he’d be seeing him later that day.

“There was an accident last night, Dem. After Roxas left my house with Ven and Naminé. They were on their way to meet their parents for dinner when it happened.”

“Oh no! Is Roxas okay? Are Ven and Nami okay?” Concern flooded Demyx’s aquamarine eyes as he tried to wrap his head around the idea that something like that had happened.

“Roxas and Naminé are in the hospital – Naminé had her baby, by the way – but… Ven, he… He’s dead, Dem. I don’t know how or what happened, but he’s gone.”

Demyx didn’t know what to think at this point. He knew the Strife family pretty well, even though his parents weren’t friends with the family. Ventus had been like his and Axel’s little brother as well, with the way he’d looked up to them. Demyx didn’t ask any more questions, though he desperately wanted to find out the details.

A somber atmosphere settled over the two as they grabbed whatever kind of food was left. They sat down and quickly and silently ate so that they would be on time to class. Axel had one tardy slot left on his student pass, and if he used that last slot, it would mean a detention for the redhead. He didn’t need that on top of everything. And who knows if his mom would have taken him to see Roxas if she learned he’d gotten a detention in the first place. He didn’t think she’d be that cruel, because the point of his visit was for Roxas, not for him.

As they shoved the last few bites of food in their mouths, the bell rang, letting the students know that first lunch was over and to get to class before the students eating in second lunch crowded the halls. The duo dumped their trays in the trash, setting the plastic on the back of the trashcan for the staff to take care of while they speed-walked to class. Right as they slipped in the doorway of the anatomy classroom, the throngs of other students passed by like a herd. Axel and Demyx would have surely been trampled.

The teacher arrived back in the classroom shortly after the remainder of his students did, with a steaming mug of coffee. He set the mug down, announcing to the class that as they filed into the lab next door, that they would need to grab a dissection packet off of his desk at the front, next to the door leading to the lab. They’d already been over safety precautions and what to do if someone felt sick as a result of dissection.

After they filed through to the lab, the teacher announced that there was a small guide about the dissection in the top drawer of the lab table. That would help them to answer the questions in their packets, as well as follow the dissection without much demonstration. He then had all the groups pick a number between one and ten to see who got first pick of the cats.

Various students called out their numbers, and Demyx ended up being closest with number 4, so he and Axel were allowed first dibs. The teacher wasn’t oblivious to the friendship they had with Roxas, and had been informed that morning of the accident, so while they were picking the cat, he whispered to them, “I’m sorry to hear about your friend.”

They were taken aback, but nodded solemnly. They didn’t want to say anything out loud so that the whole class knew. If staff decided to inform the students what happened, it was their call. Axel and Demyx picked a cat at random and took it and a box of tools back to the lab table where the dissection tray lined with blue foam awaited. They didn’t start doing anything until the teacher let all the groups come up and pick their cats.

“Okay, you all have your tools, you all have your cats. If you want gloves, there’s some in the top drawer closest to the aisle at each of your stations. Keep in mind, we are only getting started today, and I don’t expect you to move fast. I want you to take your time to learn and absorb the information. With that said, you will be skinning your cats today, and if you finish that before class lets out, you can start working on exploring the facial muscles and such. I would prefer you not to work on the packets until after we’ve had a couple of days to explore, but as I explained earlier in the week, if you start feeling nauseous, you’re more than welcome to take the guide and the packet back into the classroom. Go ahead; get started.” With that, the teacher sat at the desk at the front of the lab, anxiously awaiting when the questions would start.

Axel and Demyx removed their cat from the bag it was in and set it in the metal tray. Neither was particularly squeamish and they opted not to wear gloves (at least not today). They opened the guide and read the instructions on how to go about skinning the cat, being that neither of them had ever skinned an animal. The instructions were minimal, just advising not to cut too deeply with the scalpel. Axel figured Demyx would have steadier hands since he played his guitar so often, and thus left the skinning up to him.

They progressed very slowly, wanting to get the skin off in large pieces rather than small ones. But as they worked, they found fur getting all over their hands, since Axel had to keep holding parts of the cat for Demyx – namely the legs and tail since they’d been stuck in such odd positions when the cat was preserved. They regretted not wearing gloves. Finally, as the end of class was approaching, they removed the last bit of skin from the hind end of the cat, not at all sure what to do with it. Thankfully, the teacher spoke up at that moment.

“Alright class, we have about ten minutes until class is over, and I want you to start cleaning up. I have Ziploc bags up here for you to store your cats in since the bags they came in aren’t resealable. I have sharpies as well for you to write your names on the bag, as well as the class period. You will be keeping your cats in the lab table along with my other anatomy class, so it is imperative that you have your names on the bag. Any questions?”

“What do we do with the skin we just took off?” Someone asked from the back of the lab.

“Make sure you keep it in the bag with your cat. When we actually open them up, you can use the skin to keep all the organs from falling out inside the bag.

“Any other questions?” The class remained silent this time. “Okay, just wash your hands before you use my sharpies. When the tools have been properly rinsed, I want those returned to the front table here where you can get some spray and paper towels for your stations.”

The sinks at the lab tables were all put to use as each student went about washing their hands of the fur and smell of formaldehyde. Axel opted to get the bag and write his and Demyx’s name on it. They both doubted Roxas would be back in class in time to join the dissection, but even so, they could always add his name to it if he did get back. As the redhead joined Demyx back at their station, they situated the cat and its furry skin inside the bag, zipping it shut. They set to work rinsing out the tray as best as they could, leaving it for the next group after spraying it and their table with the cleaning agent and wiping them both down thoroughly.

The rest of the students finished up roughly the same time as Axel and Demyx and the teacher went around inspecting each of the stations to make sure they were clean enough. When he seemed satisfied, he released the students to the classroom to gather their backpacks just as the bell rang to release them to their sixth period class.

Demyx left to exchange some books at his locker, with a quick, “Keep me updated,” to Axel. The redhead went to his own locker to drop off his bag and then headed to the library for his “class” in there. Mostly, he was straightening books on the shelves and re-shelving the books that had been returned. The librarians said that it hadn’t been particularly busy in the library today though, and that he didn’t have much work to do. And it wasn’t like he would be tested over anything. After he finished what little work there was to do, he asked his teacher if he could leave early, since his last class period was a study hall. She thought it over, and decided that Axel could leave since there wasn’t anything else for him to do. She wrote a pass for him and he nearly ran to his locker to retrieve his phone and bag so that he could call Yuffie to pick him up.

The conversation was short, and Yuffie promised she was already on the way since she knew upper level students were free to leave during study periods if they were at the end of the day. Axel wasn’t waiting long after hanging up the phone with her, and when her car pulled into the lot, he barely let her stop before he was already climbing in, throwing his bag into the backseat.

The black haired woman took off when Axel buckled his seat belt, knowing he was anxious to see his best friend. Almost immediately Axel’s right leg began bouncing up and down – one of his nervous ticks. Yuffie took it as a sign of his anxiousness, however, more than a sign of nervousness.

“Axel, I know you’re probably stressed about this, whether you realize it or not, but I have to let you know that Roxas… he feels terrible. He thinks on some level that it’s his fault that Ven died, and he’s suffering from a condition called survivor’s guilt. I talked with Naminé about it after she went to go see her baby, and of course, after I finally convinced Tifa to try to sleep after having been up all night. Anyway… I just wanted you to know that he needs his best friend, but don’t sympathize. Empathize. He won’t want you feeling sorry for him, he’ll want you to understand how he feels. I know that might be a little difficult for you though… I mean, you and Reno have never had to face that kind of situation before…” Yuffie trailed off. Axel didn’t bother to reply, just shaking his leg.

The drive to the hospital seemed to take years but in reality was only about fifteen minutes because there was no school traffic to deal with yet. As Yuffie drove through the parking lot trying to find a place to park her car, it was all she could do to keep Axel from diving out of the car and running inside. She found a spot relatively close to the doors and parked, locking the vehicle with her keychain remote and managing to grasp the back of Axel’s shirt before he took off sprinting ahead without her.

“Axel, sweetie. I know you’re in a hurry to see Roxas, but I promise he’s not going anywhere for right now. And need I remind you that I’m the one who knows where his room is?” Yuffie lightly scolded her redheaded son and released his shirt when his shoulders sagged a bit. He knew she was right. They proceeded without any further hindrance, and Yuffie had to stop them outside of the room to advise her son once more.

“I want to remind you, Axel, that Roxas’ spine was injured severely and he can’t move a whole lot on his bed, okay? And remember that he’s in pain, so while you can hug him, don’t do it too tightly.”

“Okay, mom. Thank you for bringing me to see him,” the redhead said, wrapping his arms around the shorter woman. The affection startled her briefly, though she returned the gesture a moment later. Axel released her and squared his shoulders to prepare for whatever he was about to see. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest, feeling as though it might burst if it didn’t calm soon. He hadn’t realized he was so nervous to see his best friend. He steeled himself though, and stepped calmly into the dimly lit room.

Axel couldn’t help the gasp that came out of his mouth when he saw Roxas on the bed and tubes and wires seeming to be attached to the blonde everywhere. He looked so small in that moment, with his eyes shut. He looked like his face was screwed up in pain because he had his eyes shut so tight. Axel moved slowly over to the bed, and as he got closer, he saw that tears were leaking out of Roxas’ eyes, despite being closed.

He reached a hand out to rest on the blonde’s shoulder as he quietly said, “Roxas?”

Roxas jolted as the redhead’s voice broke him out of the nightmare he’d been sucked into as he dozed off. It seemed to take him a minute to remember that he was in the hospital and not dying behind the wheel of Naminé’s car. But the thought of dying reminded him of Ven and the blonde couldn’t help the fresh tears that fell as he continued to feel the waves of guilt over his brother’s death.

“Axel…” Roxas reached out for the redhead, cringing when his back protested, but not caring as Axel cradled the blonde boy against himself. Axel didn’t know what he could say – certainly not that everything would be okay, because it didn’t really seem like it would be. So he held his best friend, not caring that his shirt was getting soaked from the tears. He desperately wanted to ask what happened in detail, but he knew it’d be wrong to ask Roxas right now.

As Roxas calmed down enough to speak, his words startled Axel.

“Axel… I shouldn’t be here,” he said, voice still quivering.

“What do you mean?” The redhead was confused as to what the blonde meant.

“I mean I shouldn’t still be alive… Ven should. He shouldn’t have died in the crash Axel… I wish it had been me instead!”

The words angered Axel to a certain degree, but he remembered what his mom had told him about the survivor’s guilt that Roxas was suffering from, and clearly, the guilt had reared its ugly head.

“Roxas, do you honestly think things would be any better if your parents had lost you instead? If _I_ had lost you? I know you feel guilty that you’re still alive, but you shouldn’t… You should take this as your chance to live life to the fullest. And… Would Ven really want you to feel like this? Think about it, Rox. He wouldn’t want you to be so miserable. I know things are hard, but they will get better in time. Maybe not ideal, but better than they are now.” Axel let his voice soothe his best friend. Roxas just clung to the redhead like his life depended on it.

Sniffling, Roxas replied, “I know he wouldn’t want me to be so upset, but I can’t help it, Ax. I mean, fuck, he was only ten years old. And I’m… I was his big brother. I was supposed to protect him from getting hurt.”

“Roxas, what could you have done? I watched you get into the car; you were driving. There’s nothing that you could do to change the outcome of everything. I know what you’re feeling, because if I were you, I’d be feeling it too, but you can’t be so hard on yourself. Nothing you do now can change yesterday’s events, no matter how much you want it to. You need to understand that.”

Roxas just held even tighter to Axel as more tears came to his eyes. He thought he’d dried them up with how much crying he’d already done, but Axel’s presence alone seemed to make more tears appear. He appreciated his best friend so much more than he ever had before, silently thanking whatever deity that existed for bringing them together. Roxas didn’t know what he’d do without the redhead. Axel hoped that he could pull Roxas out of this pit of depression, but he didn’t know how long it would take to do so. He had a feeling that Roxas would be down for a while. So he continued to hold the blonde, not knowing how else to comfort him.

After several minutes, Roxas was able to get the tears under control, and he pulled away from Axel slightly. He looked up at the redhead and said quietly, “Thank you, Axel…”

“What are you thanking me for?” Axel asked.

“For being here, coming to see me, and not making a huge deal of everything.”

“Roxas, you’re my best friend. You don’t have to thank me for this. Alright? It’s my job as a best friend to be here for you!”

“Job? So it’s an obligation…” Roxas visibly deflated as he spoke.

“No, that’s not what I meant! I just… I mean that even if you don’t want me around or think you can get by on your own, I’m going to be here, helping you along the way. I’m your support system; me and whoever else you need, whether you realize you need them or not. Got it memorized?”

At Axel’s so-called catchphrase, Roxas forced himself to smile just a hare. He knew Axel would be there for him no matter what happened, and that was enough for now. The two chatted idly, not really of anything too important.

Tifa and Cloud returned a little later to tell Roxas and Naminé when the funeral for Ven was going to be. But when they got there, they only saw Axel and Roxas in the room.

“Where’s Nam?” Tifa asked Roxas.

“I don’t actually know… I was asleep when she left, but I’m assuming she went to go see her baby,” he replied sullenly. “I only woke up when Axel got here.”

“I’ll go get her,” Cloud volunteered. He stepped out of the room, heading to the NICU. Tifa stood by, looking at the two teens and then back at the floor. The atmosphere was awkward at best.

“Mrs. Strife?” Axel spoke up.

“Yes, Axel?”

“I um… I’m really sorry for your loss… I can’t begin to imagine what you’re going through right now, but just know that if there’s ever anything I can do for you or your family, I’ll do it.”

Tifa nodded, not really sure what to say. Tears threatened to fall, but she didn’t let them. Cloud came back a moment later, Naminé being pushed by Riku into the room. Everyone was silent as Cloud grasped Tifa’s hand in his own, squeezing lightly. She turned into his side, laying her head on his shoulder. He started speaking.

“So, with Dr. Wise’s help, we planned Ventus’ funeral… It’s going to be in a week and a half. Visitation will be the evening before. We’ll have the visitation open to the public, but the actual funeral will be for friends and family only…” Cloud informed everyone.

Everyone absorbed the words, not really knowing what to say. After several minutes of silence, Naminé spoke up, “Hey mom?” Tifa looked at her daughter.

“Would you like to come with me to see Joshua?” The blonde looked hopeful, wishing that this might bring a small smile to her mother’s face. Tifa looked shocked, almost as if she’d forgotten that Naminé had her baby now. But she nodded nonetheless.

As the brunette pushed her daughter’s wheelchair from the room and back to the NICU, Cloud looked at everyone else in the room. He said, “I need to go call the elementary school to let them know about the visitation.” With that, he turned and left, cell phone in hand.

Riku stepped out, calling Sora to see how putting together the baby furniture was turning out. This left Axel and Roxas alone again in the room.

“Axel?”

“Yea, Rox?”

“Will you stay? I don’t wanna be by myself right now…”

Axel nodded, sitting on the bed next to the blonde. He couldn’t fight the blush that made itself known on his face when Roxas snuggled up closer.

 

~o~

 

The week and a half passed quickly, suddenly upon everyone out of nowhere. Roxas didn’t think he’d have the mental strength to deal with things alone. He was glad when Axel said he’d definitely be there to help Roxas through the procession. Demyx showed up too as extra support. Both were wearing black suits and white button-up shirts. Axel had a black tie and Demyx sported a gray one.

Riku, Sora, and Kairi showed up for Naminé. Riku wore a dark gray suit with a black button-up and silver tie, Sora was in a simple gray button-up with black slacks, and Kairi had on a plain black dress.

Naminé was wearing dark gray slacks with a black blouse, her blonde hair pulled over one shoulder in a braid. Roxas was in a black suit with a black button-up. He opted for a green tie since he knew that had been Ven’s favorite color. His hair was as messy as ever, still doing its own thing.

Tifa opted to wear a long black skirt with a white blouse and black cardigan over the top. She’d pulled her hair into a bun on the nape of her neck. Cloud was wearing black slacks and a white button-up, forgoing his suit jacket until they reached the mortuary.

Riku, Sora, Kairi, Axel, and Demyx had been asked to meet the Strife family at the hospital so that they could ride in the limo with Cloud, Tifa, Naminé, and Roxas. The driver of the limo assured everyone that there would be room for both wheelchairs in the trunk space.

As five o’clock in the evening rolled around, the driver of the limo pulled up to the entrance of the hospital where he’d been told, calling Cloud to let him know he was there. Axel and Demyx helped Roxas into his wheelchair while Riku and Sora did the same for Naminé. The redhead opted to push his best friend, as Riku wheeled his girlfriend, following Cloud and Tifa out of the room. The rest of the group followed behind the family towards the large elevator that would take them to the first floor.

They reached the entrance and remained in silence. Tifa climbed into the limo, Cloud right behind her. He situated himself to help Riku get Naminé into the seat next to his wife. Riku wheeled the chair around to the trunk to put it away as Cloud then helped Axel with getting Roxas into the vehicle. As Axel followed Riku to put away the other chair, the rest of the party squeezed into the limo. The other two joined after maneuvering the chairs to fit like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle in the limo’s trunk, and finally, they were on their way to the funeral home. No one spoke on the way over.

When the limo pulled into the designated spot to let the group of nine out, Axel and Riku were the first to exit the vehicle, pulling the chairs out for the blonde siblings. Demyx, Sora, and Kairi stood off to the side so as to be out of the way. Again, Cloud helped get his children taken care of before he and Tifa got out as well. A doorman held the wide door open for the group as they filed inside. They all made note of the rich, dark colors as well as the fake decorative flowers sitting on the tables in the main room of the building.

They followed a short hallway to the right of the room, which led to the room where the casket was, along with all the pews. The four members of the Strife family sat up front, the rest of the group sitting in the row behind them. Up next to the casket were several different flower arrangements, one from the funeral home, one from Ven’s soccer team, one from the elementary school Ven had attended, and a few smaller ones from individual families, including one from Axel, Yuffie, and Vincent.

Yuffie and Vincent showed up shortly after that, the black haired woman offering warm hugs and watery eyes to the family. Vincent bowed his head to them, not saying anything. Next to show up were Sora’s parents and his little brother, Vanitas. Sora knew that Vanitas had been Ven’s best friend and was unsure of how his death was affecting him. Vanitas’ expression was unreadable, though his eyes were red like he’d been crying already. Sora didn’t blame him.

As the rest of the small room filled in, the preacher showed up, dressed much the same as the rest of the men in the room. He cleared his throat before starting. His voice was deep but gravelly, resonating through the room.

“‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.’ These two verses point out God’s great love for us. We know then, that He shall take care of those who remain on this earth, as well as those who have gathered in Heaven because they were called home. Such is the case today, as everyone here mourns for the death of young Ventus. But we are not merely here to mourn his death; we remain to celebrate his life. I met Ventus when he was a small child, and I knew his heart was pure from the very beginning. I have no doubts that he is watching over us all now, happy to see how many people loved him, as evidenced by the presence of everyone in this room.” The preacher continued his eulogy.

“Ventus was a very bright young man with a wonderful dream of helping others as he grew older. His life is a testament to that dream; as a young child, he set up a lemonade stand, raising money to donate to the local animal shelter when he found out that the animals there needed extensive care that couldn’t be provided because there weren’t enough donations to pay for it.” Those words put a small smile on Tifa’s face as she remembered the day she and Cloud had helped set that very stand up. Ven’s smile could have lit the entire town, it was so big. Naminé’s eyes were brimming with tears that left streaks down her face. Roxas looked down at his lap as he quietly sobbed, missing his younger brother. Axel reached a hand forward to rest on Roxas’ shoulder, squeezing it lightly.

“This young man was the very form of love we should have all strived for. He stood up for a classmate who’d been picked on for a trait he cannot control and showed him the kindness he embodied. That classmate became Ventus’ best friend.” Vanitas pulled his knees up to his chest, not wanting to cry in front of everyone else. He had no idea what he would do without Ven there, teaching him the kindness he was showed from the blonde the day Ventus had stood up for him.

“And even though he no longer lives physically, Ventus is still alive within our hearts and our memories. With those, we must cherish the time we had with him, and know that we will see him again in paradise. Let us close with prayer,” the preacher said, inviting everyone to bow their heads and close their eyes.

“Lord, I humbly ask that you watch over the Strife family and heal their hearts with your love and the knowledge that Ventus is at peace in your kingdom. Heal the physical afflictions that Roxas and Naminé face and grant them peace of mind from this ordeal. Allow them to forgive the driver who caused them their pain and give them the strength they need to survive. Lord I ask that you bring this family closer together than ever before and surround them with the people they need in order to share their grief and remind them that no matter how far it feels like they’ve fallen, you show them that it’s how one gets up from tragedy that proves life does indeed get better again. I ask this in Jesus’ holy name. Amen.”

Most of the room echoed the ‘amen,’ raising their heads again. “I would ask that anyone who wishes to, to come up and share with us a memory of Ventus that has impacted you.” With that, the preacher stepped aside.

The first to approach the front was none other than Vanitas. He’d tried drying his tears to no avail and hoped he could speak clearly. “I just want to say that Ven was my best friend; and he taught me to forgive the people who picked on me. He told me that I’d feel better doing that instead of staying mad at them… he was right, too. A few days after that happened, he invited me to join the soccer team so we could have time to become friends outside of school… And he… he was the best friend I could’ve asked for,” Vanitas’ voice trembled with his words. “Ven, I just want you to know how much I’ll miss you.” As he said that, Vanitas broke down sobbing, no longer able to hold back the flood of emotions. Sora stood up and went to him, pulling him back to his seat where their mom held him close.

Naminé asked Riku to push her up to the front next. She spoke clearly despite the constant stream of tears. “Ventus was indeed the person described, but he also had his moments of being _that_ little brother… When he was a toddler, I was fourteen, and I had just gotten all this makeup as my birthday gifts. Roxas and I went to school the next day, and mom and dad both had to work, so we called a babysitter to watch Ven until school was out. And at some point, Ven had gotten out of his crib during naptime and went into my room since he’d seen all my new makeup. And he decided to try it out all over himself and all over my bed and my walls,” Naminé laughed sadly at the memory.

“I remember being so furious with him that I cried. And when he saw me crying, he just looked up at me with his big blue eyes and said, ‘Nami, don’t cry.’ He taught me to have patience with frustrating situations, and whether he knew it or not, that helped to prepare me for motherhood more than anything. I only wish he could have met his new nephew, Joshua.” Riku bent down to kiss her cheek, whispering in her ear that Ventus would be watching over their baby from above. He pushed her back to where she’d been and sat down behind her.

Axel helped Roxas get to the front of the room and stood quietly behind him. It took a moment for Roxas to find his words. “Ven was probably the best little brother anyone could have had, and I’m glad I got to be his older brother… I remember always being so annoyed that he would follow me around everywhere when I had friends over. But I realized as I got a little older that he was just looking up to me. He told me one night that he wanted to grow up to be just like me and that he was glad I didn’t push him away… What Ven taught me was to put other peoples’ perspectives in mind instead of just my own. My regret now is that… I didn’t get to tell him one last time how much I love him…” As Roxas cried, Axel’s heart went out to his best friend. He knew that Roxas had been Ven’s hero. The two went back to their places.

The preacher looked to Cloud and Tifa, asking silently if they wanted to say something. They stood and walked up together.

Tifa started, “Ven was so perfect when he was born… I’ll always remember that day, knowing in my heart our family was complete then. Like any child would, he tried my patience more than once, and there were a few times I had asked myself if having a third child was worth it.” Tifa took a moment to compose herself. “But each and every time I asked myself that, I would see just how happy he made everyone around him, and I knew it was.”

Cloud looked at his wife and wiped a tear from her eye. He said, “You can imagine how thrilled I was to learn that our third child was another boy; there was no way I would survive with three females in the house,” the people listening chuckled at Cloud’s comment. “To see him start to grow up into the kind, loving, caring, thoughtful young man that he was made my heart swell with pride. I know he felt like he had to compete for attention compared to Naminé and Roxas, and that’s part of why he strived to do some of the things he did, but ultimately I know that his actions were based out of the goodness of his heart. He truly was a light in this world, and I only hope he can continue to be that light for others in darkness… I just want to say how much you are loved here, Ven. You’ll always be remembered by these people for just being you. Thank you for showing us all how to live life…” If there had been a dry eye in the room before, there was not a single one left now.

Even the preacher had to stop and admire Cloud and Tifa for the strength they displayed during their moment to acknowledge their son. He knew the road ahead would be a hard one for the family, but he also knew that they could make it through; and they would each be stronger for it. He returned to the front of the room and looked over everyone.

“I would like to let you all know that we will be moving to the Traverse Town Cemetery now for the committal service. I need the pallbearers to please come up here.” As he started to close the lid on the casket, Vanitas shouted out.

“Wait! I have something I have to give him!” The black haired boy ran up to where his best friend lay, appearing to sleep. He carefully placed a necklace of a key-shaped sword under Ven’s cold hands that were folded on his chest. “He always said how much he liked mine… now he has one of his own just like it…” With that, Vanitas went back to his seat, watching as the preacher shut the lid of the casket, sealing his best friend in the dark forever.

Cloud stood again, walking to where the casket was. Vincent joined him, as did Axel and Riku. Normally, it’d take six to lift a casket with a body inside, but since it was Ven, the casket was smaller than an adult sized one, and the four were able to lift it relatively easily. They followed the preacher out of the room and outside, under the canopy to load Ven’s casket into the hearse that would transport him.

Tifa pushed Naminé and Demyx pushed Roxas, allowing Sora and Kairi to follow behind as they went back to the limo. The other three joined them soon after, climbing back into the stretched vehicle. Two police cars were in the parking lot, to help lead the procession to the cemetery. As everyone filed out of the building and to their separate vehicles, the squad cars turned their lights on, ready to lead the way. One car pulled out of the parking lot as the hearse came around to the front, following closely behind the squad car. Next, the limo pulled out, and then the separate cars followed suit. As the last one left the lot, the other police car brought up the rear.

The trip to the cemetery was made quickly, since traffic wasn’t an issue. It was during that trip that the driver of the limo informed Cloud that hospital staff had asked him to return Roxas and Naminé as soon as possible after everything was said and done to make sure they weren’t putting any unnecessary pressure on anything just yet.

The cemetery came into view, and everyone parked in the small lot closest to the plot of land where the grave was. Everyone gathered around as the four pallbearers set the casket on the lowering device. The director of the funeral had baskets of white roses set up on each end of the grave, so that when the casket was lowered, each person could take one to toss into the grave.

The preacher spoke loudly, so as to be heard, “We shall bless this gravesite with a prayer. Lord Jesus Christ, by Your own three days in the tomb, You hallowed the graves of all who believe in You and so made the grave a sign of hope that promises resurrection even as it claims our mortal bodies. Grant that our brother may sleep here in peace until You awaken him to glory, for You are the resurrection and the life. Then he will see You face to face and in Your light will see light and know the splendor of God, for You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.*”

The funeral director turned on the lowering device, allowing the apparatus to slowly lower the casket into the ground below. Each person took their turn with picking up a rose to toss into the grave as a final show of respect and love for Ventus. Cloud and Tifa stood together to toss theirs in, followed by Naminé and Riku, then Roxas, and Vanitas. Axel, Demyx, Sora, and Kairi followed after, and then the other mourners. The last rose was tossed in as the casket came to rest at the bottom of the grave.

Again, the preacher spoke, “Because God has chosen to call our brother Ventus from this life to Himself, we commit his body to the earth, for we are dust and unto dust we shall return. But the Lord Jesus Christ will change our mortal bodies to be like His in glory, for He is risen, the ﬁrstborn from the dead. So let us commend our brother to the Lord, that the Lord may embrace him in peace and raise up his body on the last day.*”

Slowly, the mourners left, leaving the group of nine still at the gravesite as dusk turned to evening. Then finally, Cloud said, “We should get back to the hospital now.” He turned away from the grave of his youngest son, leading the way to the limo that would take them back to Traverse Town Mercy. As Roxas was wheeled away, he said to himself, “This is only a ‘see you later,’ Ven… I refuse to say goodbye to you right now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY for taking so long to update. Literally right after I posted chapter 6, I was working every single day, and then my internship started and I was still working every day, sometimes all day. So I would get home and have no energy to write at all. And I had two days off that I couldn't write on either because I so sick, I seriously just slept all day. Finally, my internship ended, my hours at work have slowed down some and I've had some free time. Except on Monday (the 18th), school starts for me... Joy. So free time won't last. I'm taking 14 hours this semester and I don't know how well that'll balance with work. We shall see.
> 
> Anyway, I hope everyone had a great AkuRoku day; I know I did. (:
> 
> So, if you enjoyed this chapter, or if it hurt in the feels, or you just need to say something, please, leave a comment on here! I'd love to know what's going through your mind after you finish reading.
> 
> Both of the prayers marked with the * came from liturgyoffice.org.uk/resources/OFC/6-cemetery.pdf


	8. Chapter 8

When the limo dropped its passengers off back at the hospital, Roxas and Naminé found an officer waiting for them at their room. Cloud stopped short in the hallway, acknowledging him.

"Leon?"

The brunette looked up from his small notebook and stood, seeing the family, and Axel and Riku.

"Hi Cloud, Tifa. Sorry I can't be here on better circumstances; but I need to talk to these two," he motioned to the siblings, "about the accident." Naminé's expression was grim, somber. Roxas sank into himself, seeming like a turtle trying to retreat into its shell.

"Right… Do you think you could let us all get changed first?"

"That's fine. I'll just wait out here." He sat back down, looking back at his notebook, trying to memorize the details he'd heard from his partner about what had happened.

As the siblings were wheeled into the room, Axel held himself back a bit. He was waiting for Yuffie to come pick him up. She and Vincent had gone to get some dinner after leaving the cemetery, offering to pick something up for him when he texted them to say they were back at the hospital. Riku told Naminé he was going to the NICU so that he'd be out of the way and gave her a kiss on the cheek before leaving the room.

The individual curtains were drawn around both of the beds as Tifa went to help Naminé, leaving Roxas to Cloud. Cloud grabbed Roxas' pajamas – a simple t-shirt and a pair of sweat pants – from the small bag beside the bed. He looked at Roxas, who was in the process of trying to undo his tie one-handed.

"Here, let me," he said. Cloud turned to face him and quickly undid the knot, pulling the silky material away and setting it on the bed. "Let's get you out of the chair; it'll make undressing easier."

"Okay," Roxas mumbled. He reached up with his right arm, to wrap around Cloud's neck while Cloud carefully wrapped an arm around his back and under his legs. He lifted his son easily out of the wheelchair and set him gently on the foot of the bed.

"Want me to get the buttons? Or do you want to?" he asked Roxas.

"I can get them if you can help me with this jacket. My back brace and splint make it really hard to get it off easily."

Wordlessly, Cloud helped him remove the suit jacket. Roxas moved to start undoing the buttons of his dress shirt – short sleeved to accommodate the splint on his forearm. He shrugged the material off his shoulder and was able to remove it without much movement in his back. Cloud pulled the shirt away and laid it with the jacket and tie, handing the teen's t-shirt over. He watched as Roxas pulled it over his injured arm and then over his head, pulling it down.

"You're getting better at dressing yourself with your injuries," Cloud commented.

Roxas looked down at his legs, wishing he could do that part himself as well. Cloud pulled the blankets on the bed down some, helping to move Roxas so that his legs were no longer dangling off the edge of the bed, sitting him up against the pillows.

Roxas was grateful, at least, that he'd retained the ability to control his bladder and bowels and thus no longer needed a catheter like he had when he'd gotten out of surgery initially. The doctors and nurses said that it was rare for someone with a spinal cord injury to be able to do that; that it must be a good sign for him. He'd hated dealing with the tube – it was painful and humiliating. It still felt a little humiliating to have his dad removing his pants for him, but he supposed it couldn't be helped right now.

"You okay, Roxas? Not in any pain?" Cloud asked as he pulled the sweat pants up Roxas' legs.

"Well, not pain… but I'm starting to feel a little tingly. It's been several hours since I took my last steroid, so I'm sure the nurse will come by soon with another," the blonde replied, his voice sounding defeated and weary.

Finally settled, Roxas sat back against his pillows with the bed raised. It wasn't comfortable because of the tingling sensation getting stronger – similar to when you ride in a car for too long without the chance to get out and stretch. Cloud was putting the dress clothes into the overnight bag he'd brought them in and put his own jacket on top of it. He pulled the curtain back from its position of hiding the bed, just as Tifa seemed to be doing on the other side of the room.

The couple decided to join Riku in the NICU to visit Joshua while Leon did his questioning. As they stepped out of the room, Tifa noticed Axel standing next to the doorway, across from Leon. She said to him, "Axel? Are you waiting on your parents to come get you?"

The redhead looked up at her, drawn out of his thoughts. "Yea, but I wanted to say good night to Roxas before I left… I mean, if that's okay." He then looked at Leon, still sitting patiently. Leon spoke up, "It's fine with me, but don't take too long." Axel nodded to the officer, then to Cloud and Tifa before making his way in the room. Immediately, he could feel the somber mood.

Naminé sat with her left leg bent at the knee, staring out the window to the starry sky, her right arm laid over her stomach lightly despite the cast it wore. Roxas didn't look to be comfortable at all; his shoulders were hunched in slightly – which Axel realized couldn't be good for his spine – and his hands were folded in his lap. He seemed to be lost in his own head, paying no heed to his surroundings.

Axel sat down at the foot of the bed, gaining Roxas' attention as he did so. He looked into sad blue eyes, realizing that they were still wet with tears. He wanted nothing more than to take his best friend's pain away – the physical and the emotional. If only it were possible.

"Hey," Axel said lamely.

"Hey." Roxas' tone was flat and void of any feeling; there was no inflection, nothing to suggest that Roxas was anything other than emotionally drained.

"I just wanted to come say good night before I left. I mean, I hate to leave you after a day like today, but if you want to, you can text me later; after you're finished with this… whatever-this-is. I probably won't be sleeping anyway."

Roxas slightly nodded his head.

"Do you need anything before I go? A glass of water, or something? I'm sure you've got a headache, right?"

When the blonde spoke, he was quiet, "No, it's okay. Thanks though." Again, his words were hollow.

"Well, I guess uh, good night, then." The redhead stood awkwardly, not wanting to draw this interaction out, but also not wanting to leave. As he started to turn towards the door, he caught slight movement out of his peripheral vision – Roxas laying his hand back down in his lap, as if he'd reached out. He looked fully back at Roxas, noticing the tears still escaping and leaving wet tracks down his best friend's face. Axel moved closer, leaning down to wipe the tears away before pulling Roxas into a slight hug.

"Please don't cry anymore Roxas; at least not today… I know you're still sad, and you will be for a long time, but remember that Ven's not really gone." He whispered into the blonde's ear, "And you've always got me; I'm here for you day and night."

Roxas sniffled, nodding against Axel's neck, saying, "I know. Thank you, Axel."

"No problem." Again, Axel stood, this time turning away and leaving the room. He headed down to the first floor to continue waiting for his parents. It was as he sat in the lobby, in front of patient admittance, that Axel realized he wanted to do more for Roxas than friends – even best friends – normally would. His being gay had never affected him around Roxas before, but he was starting to think it was now. He found himself wanting to hold Roxas close, closer than he did just a moment ago. He wanted to make the blonde smile and laugh; not just in his head, but in his heart too. He knew his love of his best friend ran deep; they were already exceptionally close. It really shouldn't have surprised Axel the way it did that he was starting to like Roxas romantically. He only hoped that his feelings wouldn't get in the way of their friendship.

The redhead decided he would try to curb those feelings if he could; he didn't even know if Roxas was into guys at all. But even if he was, he had a lot of healing to do for himself before he could even think about letting someone else in like that.

The chime from his phone alerting him to a text snapped Axel out of his thoughts. It was Yuffie texting him, saying she was there. As he climbed into his mom's car, all Yuffie could think was that Axel was oddly quiet, though she attributed that to the day's events and not the thoughts running through Axel's mind on repeat.

~o~

"Roxas, Naminé," said Leon, stepping into the room, "I'm sure today has been a very long day, so I'll try to keep this quick. I just need some information from the two of you about the accident. Do you think you can answer some questions?" He looked at matching sets of blue eyes.

The siblings looked at each other and nodded.

"Okay. Roxas, you were driving in your vehicle, right?" Leon looked down at his small notepad, verifying what he was asking.

"Yes, that's right."

"Can you tell me why that is, since you only have your learner's permit?" At this question, Roxas cowed, afraid he'd done something wrong.

"That would be my fault, Officer," Naminé spoke up. "You see, at that moment, I was more than seven months pregnant, and driving for a period of thirty minutes or more tended to make my back very sore, and then my hip starts to cramp up afterwards. My back was already sore at the time that I picked Roxas up, so I asked him to drive for me."

"And you picked him up from…?"

"My best friend's house; I was over there to do homework with him since we got paired up in biology, and we tried to get a good look at our dissection packet."

"Okay, and this friend of yours, where does he live?"

"He lives at the dead-end off of highway V, on the east side." Leon knew the road Roxas was talking about.

"And you were traveling in the southbound lane, correct?"

"Yes."

"You were headed back to town?"

"Yes, sir," Naminé said. "We were on our way to meet our parents for dinner, with our… with our brother in the backseat…"

"Alright. This may be hard for you, but, do you remember if Ventus was wearing his seatbelt?"

Roxas couldn't remember, and looked to Naminé to answer for him.

"He was when I drove to pick Roxas up because it's a rule I enforce when I drive. I had turned around in my seat for a moment while Roxas was driving and he had it buckled then… Why?"

Leon debated with himself momentarily as he tried to decide whether or not they should know why he asked that question.

"I asked you that because there's no way he should have sustained the injuries he did if he'd still been buckled at the time of the accident."

"Wait, so you're… you're saying Ven took his seatbelt off?"

"I'm afraid that's what his injuries say…" after a moment of silence, Leon carried on, "do you wish to press charges against the other driver? If you choose not to, the city still will since that was a fatal accident."

Looking up at Leon with tears shining in his eyes, vengeful tears, Roxas said a very deliberate, "Yes."

Naminé looked surprised. "Roxas, shouldn't we talk with mom and dad first?"

"No; I want to know that the bastard who killed Ven gets exactly what they deserve!"

"Very well then," said Leon quietly. "That's all I needed from you, unless you have any questions for me."

"What's the other driver's name?" Roxas spoke through clenched teeth.

Figuring that Roxas and his family would find out the other driver's name soon enough through the trial, he looked down at his notes again momentarily, before looking back at Roxas. "Hayner. Hayner Leif." The brunette didn't miss the look of shock on Roxas' face as he left the room.

~o~

In the NICU, Dr. Wise found the Strife parents as well as the new father, Riku, all standing around one of the incubators. Despite the long and emotionally scarring day, he at least had some good news for them.

"Mr. and Mrs. Strife, may I speak with you a moment?"

The group of three turned at the doctor's words, looking at each other before glancing back at him.

He said, "It's not an emergency, but I do have some news I wish to share, if you'd like to come with me to my office." With that, he turned, hoping they'd follow.

"We'll be back shortly, Riku," Tifa said, pulling Cloud behind her as they left.

They followed Ansem down the hallways to the elevator, where they would ride down one floor to get to Ansem's office. The ride on the elevator was a little awkward, but silent.

As they exited the elevator and rounded the corner to get to the office, the parents were trying to figure out what it was that Ansem could possibly want to tell them. The doctor allowed them inside and shut the door behind them, moving to sit behind his desk.

"Mr. and Mrs. Strife, I'm sure you're wondering why I wished to speak with you." The parents nodded, but stayed quiet, knowing the doctor would explain himself. "It seems to me that somehow, the media connected your son's obituary to the accident that caused it, and have thus spun it to be a very prolific case," he said, laying down a newspaper with a front-page story covering the accident.

"Now, this is not why I brought you in here; and while you may be thinking that this is a bad thing, having the media involved, I assure you that you can spin it in your favor. I would speak with a lawyer about that. As for my reason of speaking with you, it is this: since people are reacting so strongly to this case, it was brought to my attention that a donation pool was formed so that a motorized wheelchair could be purchased for Roxas. It will be delivered to the hospital in a few days."

At the news, Cloud and Tifa sat, stunned. That was a huge financial burden off of their shoulders, since they knew they didn't have the money to come up with one.

"When the chair arrives, all I will need from you is a signature, essentially saying that you accept the donation. Without that signature, the chair will be donated to the hospital within twenty-four hours."

"We understand, Ansem. Thank you," Cloud replied. As they stood up to leave, Ansem spoke up once again.

"That is not all." The parents sat back down. "It is my understanding that Naminé's arm is still broken, am I right?"

"Yes, sir," Tifa answered.

"I know that she cannot be expected to maneuver her own chair one-handed, and we have a motorized chair we can loan her until both her arms are able to be used. That will require a contract, which will say that if the chair is not returned within a certain time period, the hospital will bill you for it, but I feel like I can trust you to return the chair in a timely manner, yes?"

"O-of course. Ansem… Thank you. You don't know how much this will help us." The Strifes were astounded at the news they'd received.

"Do not thank me, thank your community. They will be glad to know that they are all helping a family such as yours."

At the subtle dismissal, Cloud and Tifa left the office, heading back upstairs to see their children and tell them the good news.

~o~

When the parents reached the room again, they noticed immediately that Roxas was… not all there. He seemed to be mumbling to himself and tears were slipping from his eyes, but he wasn't aware of them. Tifa looked at her son, stepping over to his side and hugging him close, asking, "Baby, what's wrong? What happened?"

Naminé responded, "Mom, do you remember that group of friends Roxas had before he started high school?"

Cloud said, "I remember them," though he was confused.

"I do too," Tifa said, "but what do they have to do with anything?"

"Roxas' old friend Hayner… he was the driver who hit us…" the blonde girl spoke the words quietly, trailing off.

The parents let the news sink in for a moment. Tifa was the first to break out of the stupor.

"How do you know?"

"The officer told us after asking if we wanted to press charges."

Cloud continued the topic, "And what did you two say?"

"I wanted to talk to you guys first," Naminé said, "but Roxas said go ahead. But… I don't want to. I don't want to go through a trial because I know it'll be painful and I know it's going to drag out for months on end. I just want to heal and move on, for the sake of Riku and Joshua. I mean, we were told that if we don't press charges, the city will."

Silence reigned in the room before Cloud spoke up again.

"…I'm sorry Naminé, but… I can't let this go without getting justice for Ven. Even if the city presses charges, I doubt anything will happen to prevent something like this from happening to another family."

"We can talk to a lawyer, Naminé, but I have a feeling that this is one of those all or nothing things. Either we press charges as a family, or we don't. And I'm with your father on this," Tifa said in a low voice.

"Will you take me to see Joshua?" Naminé avoided responding. She wanted to talk things over with Riku and gather his opinion.

Cloud helped the girl move back into her wheelchair and pushed her down the hallways to the NICU. Riku met them at the doorway, taking over for Cloud. As her father left her in the hands of her boyfriend, Naminé sniffled.

"What happened, Nam?"

She recounted the interactions, first with Leon, then with her parents.

"I just want to be able to get better, Riku; to move on from this whole experience and step into my role as Joshua's mother… I don't want this pain to draw out any longer than necessary, and I know that a trial is going to make it do just that. But my parents are set on pressing charges, and so is Roxas. I know they all want justice for Ventus, and I understand that, I do… But I want my baby brother to be able to rest in peace." Her voice wavered, and she sobbed.

"I just want him back, Riku."

The silver haired man bent down and held his girlfriend. "I know you do, Nams. I know." He stroked her hair as she cried, grasping his shirt tight.

As she let the fit ebb away, she looked at Riku, asking him, "What would you do in my place?"

And Riku thought about the question. He could understand Naminé's wants, but he could also understand where her parents were coming from. He studied Naminé, and even with bloodshot eyes and tracks on her cheeks from drying tears, with the constant sniffling to keep the snot from leaving her nose, the blonde was still the most beautiful girl Riku had ever seen. His heart clenched at the sight of her still, and he could feel it breaking for her.

"I would follow through with what your parents want. I know where you're coming from on everything, but ultimately, I'd want to be there to see this kid get what he deserves for doing what he did. I imagine that, for Roxas, for your parents, this will bring some type of closure. And I know you don't want this trial, but you've got me, Naminé. And you've got Joshua. Remember that we'll be by your side through this whole thing, and that we both love you."

He closed the distance between them, pressing his lips against hers. Eventually, the grip on Riku's shirt loosened, and Naminé's left arm circled around behind his neck. She pulled him as close as she could, responding to his kiss earnestly. Without a doubt, Riku's kisses always made her feel better, if only even slightly. They pulled back, Riku resting his forehead against hers lightly.

"I love you so much, Naminé Strife."

Naminé smiled a little, and said, "And I love you, Riku Shibuya."

He pecked her lips again and stood straight, moving behind the blonde to push her out of the middle of the room and towards the incubator that held their son.

"He's gained a bit of weight," Riku pointed out. He pulled the paper with Joshua's information off the end of the incubator, showing Naminé that he now weighed in at two pounds, twelve ounces.

"But he's still having trouble breathing," Naminé countered. She was excited for the progress Joshua was making with gaining weight, but his trouble with breathing on his own worried her. She was afraid that he would have problems all his life because of his premature birth.

"Have faith, babe. He'll do just fine," the silver haired father tried to console Naminé. It was as if he was saying that in response to her thoughts and not what she'd actually said. Though Riku knew all too well how she worked. There was a good chance that's exactly what just happened.

"I'm trying, Riku. I am."

Their conversation came to a close, and Riku sat down in the chair he'd been in earlier, twining his fingers with Naminé's as they watched their little boy, breathing with help from a machine.

~o~

The day following the funeral, Olette opted to visit Hayner in the county jail on the outskirts of Traverse Town. She checked in at the front desk with the guards sitting there. They had her set her purse on the table next to the metal detector that she had to pass through. She did so without the detector going off and watched as the guard rifled through her belongings. He confiscated her cell phone for the visit and told her she could reclaim it on her way out the door.

She was led by another guard to a counter, privacy walls on either side of it and a large pane of bulletproof glass dividing it down the middle. There were chairs on either side of the counter, and two phones for each station, positioned to be to the right of the person sitting in the chair. She sat and waited for a few minutes while yet another guard fetched Hayner from his cell block to alert him to a visitor.

Olette watched as a door on the other side of the glass opened and Hayner was brought to the station she was at, and it shocked her to see him in a bright orange jumpsuit with socks and sandals. There were black letters on the front of the jumpsuit, though they were so faded it was impossible to read them. She grabbed the phone to her right, waiting as Hayner did the same on his side of the glass, slowly, as if he had no energy.

It was then that she noticed the large, bruise-like purple bags underneath Hayner's eyes, and she knew he wasn't sleeping. She was so torn up about this whole thing, but now, she could only imagine how Hayner felt.

"Hey, Hay."

Hayner closed his tired hazel eyes at his nickname, sinking even further down in his chair. His voice was hoarse when he spoke, "Hey Lettie." He sounded as tired as he looked.

The brunette let out a humorless laugh, saying, "I wanted to come see how you were doing but… well… I see now." Hayner didn't respond to her words.

"I've been visiting Pence every day," she said.

At that, he looked up and into the bright green eyes he loved so much.

"How's he doing?" Hayner was hoping for some good news, though he knew it wasn't likely.

"He's still in a coma, but he's responding to physical and aural stimuli more than before," Olette revealed. "The doctors think he might wake up soon, even."

"…'Lette, I miss you and Pence. I wish I had never gotten in my car that day," Hayner said, eyes misting over slightly. The regret layered itself on his voice and melded into his words seamlessly.

"I miss you too, Hay. And… I'm sorry I slapped you that night…" She flushed in embarrassment. She was just so shocked.

"Don't apologize… I deserved it. I still do. I deserve to be in place of…" he trailed off.

"Who, Hayner?" Olette was unaware of the other victims.

"I… Olette, the other car… I hit Roxas and his sister. And… his little brother was in the backseat and… Lettie… I killed Ventus." An anguished cry tore itself from his throat at the mere mention of what his actions caused.

Olette gasped. She remembered the blonde boy who had been a carbon copy of their friend. She'd been thinking about Roxas recently as well, hating how he'd drifted apart from them as he grew closer to Axel. She'd been wishing for his company in visiting Pence, thinking that maybe, he could help to wake the brunette boy up.

"…I don't deserve to still be alive, Lettie. It should have been me that died, not him."

"Hayner, don't say that!"

"Why not?" The hatred the dirty blonde felt for himself rose a few more degrees, sparking anger amongst his sadness. "It's the truth! And don't you dare tell me otherwise." As quickly as the anger came, it disappeared. The self-loathing made his voice thick with tension, and he felt like even less of a person as he realized he'd just snapped at Olette. He'd always had a quick temper, but it'd never reared its ugly head at his girlfriend before. Hayner stared down at his lap in defeat, mumbling out an apology.

Olette didn't respond, opting instead to change the subject. "I um… I talked with your mom, Hay. She said that your case is going to go to trial, regardless of whether or not… charges are pressed. The cops told her that 'even if the other driver doesn't, the city will.'" The brunette swallowed around the lump in her throat.

"I convinced her to find a lawyer for you. I told her you would need one, and she finally found someone to represent you. He's with the prosecutor, discussing the charges against you." Olette's words were low and laced with sorrow.

"You're too good for me, Olette…" Hazel eyes locked with green again.

The brunette furrowed her brow, not quite sure what he meant.

"Lettie, I want to thank you for giving me the best times of my life. I've experienced so much with you, and… I love you," he said. The girl's green eyes misted over. In more than a year of dating, and a lifetime of being friends, Hayner had never once said those words.

"I love you too, Hayner," she said, placing her hand in the middle of the glass between them. Hayner raised his hand and placed it on the glass as well, wanting more than anything to be able to hold her small hand in his one more time.

"But, it's because I love you, Olette, that I have to break up with you."

"What?"

"I won't be able to be with you when I go to prison, Lettie. I won't be able to take care of you at all. So, I want you to find someone who can. Forget about me. I won't subject you to a lifetime of prison visits. That's not a life…" Before Olette could get another word in, Hayner set his phone back on its cradle. The guard standing on his side of the glass moved to his side as he got up and led him back to his cell block.

The brunette sat, open-mouthed, not quite believing what just transpired. Hayner… broke up with her? Aware that she was still holding the phone on her side, she set it on the cradle on the wall next to her. Burning with frustration and hurt, she knew he'd have to try a lot harder than that to get rid of her. Hayner was her first love and she didn't want anyone else to fill the spot he was determined to leave with her.

She was escorted back out to the lobby of the jail and retrieved her belongings, exiting the overwhelming building. Getting into her green Beetle, she left the grounds, ready to speak with Hayner's mom again. She hoped the woman would be able to talk some sense into him when she visited with the defense attorney.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone. First of all, let me apologize straight up for how indecently long this chapter took me. I'm so sorry about keeping you all waiting. When school started back up last semester, it was one of my hardest semesters because of the amount of work I had to do for all of my classes. I had quizzes in every class at least once a week, papers to write, comprehensive tests/midterms/finals to work on... And then, right at the start of November, I got into an accident and totaled my brother's car, in the midst of school and work. Not to mention the fact that it was getting busier and busier out at the mall because of people doing Christmas shopping.
> 
> I know it all just sounds like one big excuse, but I seriously had no time when I was actually in the mood to write. So for all that, I'm so very sorry for making you wait.
> 
> Good news though; this semester (which starts tomorrow and goes through May first) is going to be relatively light for me, hopefully. I'm still taking 14 hours, but I only have four classes this semester rather than five like I had last semester. And none of my classes are writing intensive. On Mondays and Wednesdays, I have a massive break between my classes, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I'm done at 10:45 in the morning, so on the days when I'm not working, I'll be able to write the next chapter. Here's hoping it doesn't take me forever.
> 
> I hope you all can forgive me and are still looking forward to the rest of this story like I am. I sincerely hope you all enjoyed this chapter too. I had been meaning to get another scene in here, but I really felt like I was forcing myself to write, which just was not enjoyable, but I wanted to get this up before I had to go back for classes again. Please comment and tell me what you think or if there's anything you have questions about. I'll try get back to you as soon as possible. Just know that I love you all. Thank you so much!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> FEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLS.

It had been three weeks. Three weeks since Roxas’ life had been turned upside down and inside out and he – along with Naminé – were being released from the hospital. They were being sent home, with orders to not do anything too strenuous as they continued to heal, amongst a chorus of ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘You’re so strong’ from the various staff members they’d seen around and about. Roxas’ fractures in his arm were doing better, and he would be able to start physical therapy soon; that had been good news, according to Doctor King. But Roxas didn’t feel like it was. He didn’t feel much at all; he was so numb lately. Even when Axel came to visit him, to tell him all about how his and Demyx’s attempt at dissection was going, in an effort to distract the blonde from the brunt of emotional turmoil he was still dealing with.

Naminé had another month in the cast on her arm, and had already been taken by Riku to a special area in the hospital that allowed for medical equipment to be purchased. They’d spoken to the person in charge over there, in accordance with the doctor’s plans, to see about getting fit for a prosthetic leg when her arm was fully healed, so that she’d be able to learn how to walk again. However, Doctor King had told the blonde that she’d need to recover strength in her arm before she even attempted to try to stand. She’d need both arms to hold onto the rails on the walking track set up in one of the corners. So they talked about the arm exercises she’d need to work through to build strength back up and what kind of things she’d need to use to complete the exercises.

Cloud had finished doing his best to space things out in their home more, to make room for a wheelchair. Thankfully, the house was spacious enough that the furniture formations could be moved around so that there was room on all sides for a motorized wheelchair to move. Neither he nor Tifa had stepped foot into Ven’s room since the accident – except to quickly grab the clothes he’d been buried in – because the pain was still too raw, too fresh, too _much_ to deal with just yet.

The parents had talked about the financial burdens, hoping that maybe, if they talked with their bank, they could get a temporary reprieve from their mortgage payments, to hopefully build up enough money to purchase a vehicle that could operate a wheelchair lift. They knew if they didn’t, Roxas would never be able to go anywhere with them, unless they could get a regular pushchair to take if they needed to leave the house. They didn’t know, however, how things would progress with Roxas and the way his back was healing. He’d had another x-ray that morning, but there was nothing new to report, really. Not since his previous one two days ago.

“Cloud?”

“Yea, babe?” he responded.

“How are we gonna do this?” Tifa sighed heavily, sinking down onto their sectional, her husband coming to sit beside her. He opened his arms to her, and she leaned into him, taking comfort in the scent she breathed in. “How are we going to afford a lifetime of care for Roxas? I mean, the hospital bills are going to wipe out our entire life’s savings and then some, and I know that if anything else happens, we won’t be able to afford anything, and then there’s the prescriptions and–” Cloud put his finger to her lips, stopping her from working herself up again.

“Look, Tifa, I know things are going to be hard, but it’s nothing we can’t handle. I mean, take a look at how far we’ve come. Do you remember when you first told me you were pregnant with Naminé? You were sixteen. And so was I. We were so scared of the future and what it entailed, but we had each other. We sacrificed everything to provide for our daughter and still somehow put ourselves through school to give her a better future. Everything we did though, we did together. And I know that as long as we have each other, for better or worse, we’ll find a way to get through this, to deal with everything, just like how we did before.” Cloud looked at his wife, his eyes still full of pain, but also showing a tiny glimmer of hope. “Right?”

Tifa nodded and Cloud removed his finger from her lips, covering them with his own. There was comfort being conveyed through this kiss, for both parties. The brunette responded to his kiss, pressing with a little more urgency, though without lust. This was a show of support, of love. When they both pulled away from each other, Tifa rested her forehead against Cloud’s, moving herself to somewhat straddle his lap. “I love you Cloud.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her closely. “I love you too. ‘Forever and ever, as long as we both shall live,’ remember?” Tifa rested her head on Cloud’s shoulder, her arms pressed between them.

“As long as we both shall live…” she repeated, closing her eyes. They sat that way for several long minutes, not quite ready to break the atmosphere that they’d created. Eventually though, Tifa sat back, looking into the deep blue eyes she’d fallen in love with so long ago. “Let’s go get Naminé and Roxas.”

Cloud nodded, pecking her lips once more before letting her up. Before they could get any further though, there was a knock at their front door. They looked at each other, each silently asking the other if they knew who it was. Confusion present in their expressions, they made their way to the door, opening it to see a rather short and skinny golden-haired girl in bright orange and yellow scrubs. Her hair was in a messy bun with some random braids mixed in, her eyes a lively green color.

“Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Strife? My name’s Rikku, I’m here on behalf of the hospital; Dr. Wise asked me to deliver the motorized chairs here,” she explained. Sure enough, in the street just beside their driveway was a van with the hospital’s logo. She brandished a clipboard with some documents on it, saying, “I just need some signatures on these, saying that you’ll have the rental chair back to the hospital six weeks from today, and then we can get them unloaded.” After handing the clipboard over to Cloud, she found a pen in her pocket, giving that to the other blonde as well.

The couple standing just inside the doorway read carefully over the documents, remembering the contract that Ansem had mentioned to them previously. The agreement was essentially as Rikku had explained. It gave them six weeks to use the chair for Naminé, until her arm could be fully healed, enough so that she could finally start to walk. It mentioned that they would be billed if it was late though, and the amount was not something easily replenished; the chair they were being loaned was four thousand dollars. Making sure there was nothing else they needed to know about the agreement, Cloud signed in the spots he saw marked with an x.

He handed the clipboard and pen back to Rikku, and she grinned at them, tucking the pen back into the pocket on her scrubs. She turned back towards the van. “Follow me, please,” she said, leading them to the back doors of the hospital vehicle. She opened the outward facing doors, and the trio was faced with a metal lift that had been folded to fit inside the van. There was a small button just inside the doors to release the lift from its upward position. Rikku pressed the button and stepped back some as the lift began to lower itself to be level with the inside of the van where the chairs were strapped in.

Once it was, the petite blonde climbed onto it and into the back part of the van. She bent down to the floor of the vehicle, undoing the straps that held the first chair into place. There were handles on the back of the chair so it could be pushed if it needed to be, and she released the brakes on the chair. She maneuvered it to the lift and stepped on with it, pressing another button below the first to lower the lift to the ground. It moved slowly, but eventually let Rikku and the chair off on the asphalt.

The chair itself was a bright, shiny, sapphire blue and appeared to be brand new. Obviously, this was the chair for Roxas. There was a small steering device that looked like a joystick on the right arm, as well as some buttons. There was a power button as well, and down below the actual chair was an empty basket looking space, where some small belongings could be left, if need be. Tifa noticed a small square down by the wheels where the motor was held, though she didn’t know what it was. In the time she’d spent studying the new chair, Rikku had brought the other out and onto the street.

“Alright,” she said, “let’s get these babies out of the street and I’ll tell you how to work them.” She pushed the hospital’s chair up into the driveway, waiting for the couple to follow with the blue one. They did as she instructed and stopped it next to the plain gray chair.

“So, these chairs are from the same company, but that one,” she pointed to the blue chair, “is a newer model, though not much has changed between the two. They have the same basic functions. This is the power button here, which obviously just turns the chair on and off. I’d recommend turning it off when it’s not being used, like if you’re at the dinner table or something, and especially at night.

“This is what controls the movements of the chair,” Rikku touched lightly on the stick. “These chairs are designed to make full three hundred and sixty degree turns, and can be moved forward and backward, so mobility is awesome in these things. This,” she showed them one of the buttons, “is a panic button. If there’s something wrong, all you have to do is press that and a loud alarm will sound from the speaker hidden on the back side of the headrest.” Bending down to the front of the chair, on the bottom, she motioned to a pair of lights that Cloud and Tifa hadn’t noticed at first. “These are headlights so nighttime visibility won’t be hampered, and can be turned on and off with this button here,” the blonde pointed to a button adjacent to the panic button. “And lastly, we have manual brakes that can be engaged from the back of the chair here,” she explained, showing them. The levers were actually built into the handlebars; all that had to be done to engage the brakes was unlocking the handles from the push position and moving them inwards, so that they lined up within the space between the backrest and the headrest. Once there, they would lock into place because of the piece resting against the back wheels that were otherwise hidden.

“Oh, and one other thing. This square down here above the wheel holds the charging cord for the chair, so all you have to do is press in on that square and it’ll pop out and you can plug the cord in to charge the chair’s battery. These batteries are designed to last a long time, but try not to push them to the limits if you can. They’ve been fully charged for you, and with only minimal use, you won’t need to charge them again for three to five days. Now, with more moderate use, I would say charge them every other day. A great feature that was included in these models is that if you charge them overnight, and they fully recharge before anyone wakes up, they will automatically stop charging, which will save you money on your electric bill.”

Rikku stayed silent for a moment, pensive, as though she was forgetting something. “Oh yea! I almost forgot to give you something.” She went back to the still-open van, lifting a section of the flooring inside to reveal a storage area, with two folded standard wheelchairs laying on their sides. She pulled one out and set it next to her on the lift and then pulled the other out. She kept them folded for ease of pushing both at once and brought them over to the perplexed parents.

“Dr. Wise said he understands how much of a financial struggle you guys are in because of everything, and that if you had standard chairs, you wouldn’t have to invest in a new vehicle with a chair lift. He said to tell you that these chairs are a gift from him and that you’re not to argue, they’ve already been paid for in full. When you get to the point where you don’t need one of them anymore, just send it with the chair on loan and it’ll be donated to the hospital. Sound good?” Her words – or rather, Dr. Wise’s words – shocked the both of them as they both felt the sense of Ansem’s generosity and helpfulness.

Tears welled up in Tifa’s eyes and she sobbed in relief. The tension left her frame and she smiled, truly smiled, for the first time since the accident. Cloud’s mouth was left hanging open as he was left speechless. He couldn’t wrap his head around the idea that Dr. Wise had just up and purchased two wheelchairs for them out of nowhere. He looked like a fish out of water as he attempted to speak several times, opening and closing his mouth, with no sound coming out.

“You know, if you’re not careful, you might start catching flies,” Rikku giggled at Cloud’s expression. She was pulled into a hug by the overly happy couple, and just grinned. She loved this part of her job.

“Thank you, Rikku. You don’t know how much this is going to help us,” Tifa said. The smaller woman hugged them both back fiercely, happy to have made some kind of difference.

“Don’t thank me, I’m just the messenger. Ansem is the one you’ll wanna thank. He’s the one who pulled the strings to make this,” she gestured to the standard chairs, “happen.”

“Either way, we’re thankful. This is going to make our lives so much easier.”

“You’re welcome, then. Now, I heard your kids are supposed to be discharged today, right?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Cloud replied.

“Well, what are you waiting for, now? Take those motorized chairs inside and get your car out here so we can load these ones into the trunk!”

The couple each took one of the newer chairs, pushing them inside the door and towards the living room. They exited the house through the door to the garage, where the car was parked. Cloud was driving, so Tifa got in on the passenger side. The garage door opened behind them and they backed out, careful to make sure that Rikku and the two chairs from Ansem were safely to the side of the driveway. The blonde popped open the trunk of the car and got out to load the second chair while Rikku took care of the first.

Once the trunk was closed, Cloud spoke to her again, “Thank you, again, Rikku.”

“No probs, Mr. Strife. I’m happy to be of service!” She beamed at him. “I’ll see you… whenever? Bye!” She strode off towards the hospital van, closing up the back once she got the ramp back inside. She hopped into the driver’s seat and took off, waving to them.

When she was out of eyesight, Cloud got back in the car and headed in the direction of the hospital.

~o~

Naminé sat in the NICU, right arm in the sling against her still-bruised body. She looked adoringly at her son – still  under three pounds. Joshua’s doctor had told Naminé and Riku that they wanted Joshua to hit between six and a half and seven pounds by the time they sent him home with them. After his initial bit of weight gain – six ounces – it’d slowed down majorly. They’d assumed  it was normal for babies to gain weight that fast, especially in the hospital where they were closely monitored throughout the day and night. But now, he was down to only gaining about a quarter of an ounce per day. The new mother sighed, hating that his weight gain was so slow, knowing that he’d be in the NICU for at least six months. But she knew it was for the better in the long run.

As she sat there, Naminé ran one finger gently up and down Joshua’s right arm – the one closest to the hole where her hand could reach in. She was having a hard time dealing with not being able to hold her baby, not being able to do more than this. She wouldn’t even be able to see his eyes until he was more developed. Although she’d heard that all babies were born with blue eyes and the color changed as the child grew older. It’d make sense if he had blue eyes though – Naminé did, and while Riku’s were more of an aqua blue, they were still blue.

Naminé hoped Joshua would have his father’s eyes.

Speaking of Riku, she heard him talking in the hallway, approaching the NICU, though it didn’t sound like anyone was with him. She looked back a little bit, unable to see far due to the pain in her neck from the whiplash she’d suffered. She quickly turned back to her son, surmising that Riku was on the phone with someone.

“I just wanted to say thanks again for doing that for me,” he said into the smartphone. He continued with, “I think she’ll be thrilled to see.” He was silent for another moment and moved closer. “I’ll talk to you later, I’m in the NICU now,” he spoke a little quietly. “Okay. Bye.” Riku was standing to Naminé’s left side now, and he leaned down to kiss her temple. “Sora says hi,” he said, pocketing his phone.

“What were you guys talking about?” The blonde assumed they were talking about her, based on what she’d heard from Riku’s conversation, but wanted to make sure.

“A surprise for you,” he said. He failed to elaborate past that, and Naminé nudged him with her good arm.

“What did I tell you about spending money on me, Ri?” She scolded him lightly, but had a smile on her face, betraying what she thought.

“This kind of spending was necessary, Nam.”

A few seconds of silence and then, “Baby furniture?”

“Maybe,” Riku said, drawing out the ‘a’ in a mischievous manner. Which meant that yes, he’d bought baby furniture.

Having deduced that in her head, she asked him, “How much did you spend?”

“Ah-ah, you don’t get to ask that. Not until you see it, at least.” He’d been able to find the set that Naminé loved from Toys R Us, but much cheaper than the $1400 price tag the store offered for it. And the guy he’d bought it from had offered in a changing table as well, that was not part of the set but matched all the same.

“Riku, Naminé,” was spoken from the doorway. Cloud was standing there, along with the brunette who’d shown Riku the way to the NICU that first time – Aerith. She made her way into the room, saying to the parents, “I just wanted to check Joshua’s vitals real quick.” As she made her way over, Naminé pulled her hand out of the incubator and allowed Riku to wheel her back, so Aerith could have room to work.

The nurse – noting that the indicator stripe on Joshua’s diaper was showing up – made to open the incubator with gloved hands so that she could change the diaper, but also weigh it. There was a scale in a drawer in the shelving unit next to the incubator; each incubator had one next to it. On top of the shelving unit was a small computer that Aerith used to make notes for each of the babies. She’d logged into the system the hospital had in place and was ready to input Joshua’s vitals.

She marked down the weight of the diaper and made a disapproving hum noise. Discarding of the soiled diaper, she reached for a hypo-allergenic wipe for the supremely sensitive skin of premature babies and cleaned him up, replacing his diaper with a new one. It still looked massive on him. But diapers were only so small, so until Joshua grew some more, they would look too big for his body. Aerith made a note in the computer of the temperature of the incubator and of Joshua’s body temperature. She timed his pulse on the machine next to him, counting beats and after a minute was up, she made another disapproving hum. After all that, she turned on the scale used to weigh babies, zeroing out the sensor after she’d placed a blanket on it. Very carefully, she moved Joshua out of the incubator and onto the scale. His weight now read two pounds and eleven ounces. He’d lost an ounce.

“Oh that’s not good…” Aerith spoke out loud.

Naminé was worried and Riku said, “What’s not good?” The nurse jumped a bit, having forgotten the parents were in the room with her. She input his weight into the computer and moved the tiny baby back into the incubator so he could stay warm.

After putting everything back the way it was supposed to be and logging out of the computer and disposing of her gloves, Aerith looked back at the young couple. “I noticed when I weighed his diaper that Joshua’s urine output didn’t match what it should with the amount of fluid he’s getting. Which means that he’s losing water. His heart rate is also increased from what’s normal. So he’s dehydrated for sure, but I’m not certain what caused the weight loss. I want to talk to his doctor and find out what he wants to do.” As the parents took in the information, Aerith excused herself from the room, heading back to the nurse station.

“Naminé,” Cloud spoke up. “Are you ready to head home?” Her discharge papers had been signed, saying she was going home with her parents rather than with Riku for now, since the Strife house was a little roomier. The blonde looked at Joshua, knowing that she couldn’t do anything for him right now. Her heart broke as she saw him – papery, translucent skin, hooked up to more machines than any child ever should be, wearing a small hat that probably wouldn’t even cover Naminé’s palm – and she nodded. Riku pushed her chair out from the NICU and back down the hall to the room she’d been in previously.

It was a mostly quiet affair as they rejoined Tifa and Roxas, personal items (including the same clothes they’d been in during the accident) collected in small duffel bags by the door. Tifa was standing behind her son as he tried to mostly transition himself from the bed to the wheelchair. He was being stubborn about getting help, but Cloud helped him anyway. He was pouting by the time he was situated, hating that he couldn’t do much of anything for himself just yet.

“Roxas, you have to take it easy. Until we have the all-clear from Doctor King, you need to be asking us for help.” Roxas mostly just sounded defeated when he said, “Yea, I know.” It was easy to see how much he’d changed in the short time they’d been in the hospital. Roxas was not normally a sulking teenager, but he’d had a very dark mindset after the accident. Naminé reached over to his right arm with her left, grabbing his hand, and squeezing it, reminding him that she was there.

“Don’t worry Roxas,” Tifa said. “And don’t be so glum about things as they are. I know it’s a hard road we have to take now, but… I choose to believe things will get better for us than they are right now. And besides that, we have a surprise waiting for you at home.” She and Cloud had forgotten to somehow break the news to him and Naminé that they had motorized chairs to use around the house and the standard chairs specifically for going places other than home. Tifa was sure that would somehow make Roxas’ bleak outlook temporarily better. She hoped it would, anyway.

Cloud had bent down to pick up the duffel bags from the floor and Riku pulled Naminé’s chair from the room, Tifa following behind with Roxas in tow. The eldest Strife picked up the rear, and the group made their way downstairs. Cloud told the rest to wait for him while he pulled the car up to the door from the parking spot, and Riku followed behind, because Naminé was riding with him over to the Strife household.

Cloud and Tifa helped Roxas get situated into the back seat, while he closed his eyes and tried to think about the fact that he wasn’t in the same car, he was not driving, and this was _not_ the same situation he’d been in when Naminé’s car was crashed into.

Tears formed in the outer corners of his eyes and he was breathing deeply, all while Tifa stood silent, not knowing what to do to help him.

Meanwhile, Riku was busy helping Naminé get comfortable in his car. He tried not to jostle her too much while getting her buckled in, and he closed the door gently behind her. He wheeled the chair she’d been using back inside the automatic doors, where a nurse had just walked in to receive the chairs. Cloud maneuvered Roxas’ chair back inside to the nurse as well, and hurrying back out to the car. He got in and told Roxas that it was okay, he wouldn’t let anything happen to them.

After making sure everyone was properly fastened in, Cloud led the way back to the house, hoping Roxas would be okay after he was out of the vehicle. That wasn’t a good sign and he should have seen it coming. Naminé was faring a little better, but still kept her eyes closed. At a stoplight, Riku reached over and stroked his thumb on her knee. She visibly relaxed and chanced a peek at him.

“We’re almost there, babe. You’re okay.” His voice was hushed, so as not to startle her. Naminé nodded and kept her eyes open for the rest of the ride home. It stayed quiet in both cars.

Cloud had pulled into the driveway, not entering the garage just yet. Riku was left to park along the curb, partially blocking the driveway so that Naminé’s door would open to the concrete instead of the grass in the yard. Neither Cloud nor Tifa had gotten out of the car yet, and both were turned around in their seats, talking to Roxas. He was visibly shaking and appeared panicked from the ride home.

Riku got out of his Torrent and walked over to the other vehicle, tapping on the window as if to ask what was wrong. Cloud turned back around in his seat properly and exited the car, closing the door to speak with Riku privately.

“Is he having a panic attack?” Riku asked.

“Yea,” Cloud replied, “he started getting fidgety when we first got him in the car, before we even left the hospital, and it just went downhill from there. I’m not sure what to do, because he won’t let us touch him, but I know it’d help to get him out of the car.”

Naminé opened the passenger door of the Torrent, asking if she was getting out.

“Hold on, Nami, we’ve gotta take care of Roxas first,” he called over. The blonde nodded, but left the door open, shutting the vehicle off since Riku forgot to. She watched with worry as Riku slowly opened the backseat door of the Strife vehicle, reaching in to try to get Roxas’ attention.

“Roxas?” Riku spoke quietly. His hand lightly touched Roxas’ shoulder and was immediately smacked away.

“Don’t touch me!” Roxas shouted, curling in on himself. His free arm wrapped itself tightly around his torso as much as he could stand. Riku pulled back and asked Cloud to open the back door on the other side of the car, to give Roxas more space and make him realize he wasn’t trapped, he wasn’t in _that_ car.

Nothing was working though, and Roxas was going to start hyperventilating if they couldn’t calm him down some. Suddenly, Riku said, “What if we try calling Axel?” The parents looked at each other for a moment and nodded, Tifa pulling out her cell phone to call Yuffie.

It rang three times before the small, spunky woman answered, “Hello?” 

“Hey Yuffie, I need a favor.”  
  
“Sure, what is it Tif?”

“I need you to put Axel on the phone. Roxas is having a panic attack and we don’t know how to calm him down.”

“Oh! Hang on, I’ll get him.” There was noise in the background as Yuffie was likely going upstairs to Axel’s room. Hushed tones could be heard after a moment, and then Axel was talking.

“Mrs. Strife?”

“Axel, I need you to help me here. I’m gonna put you on speaker, and I need for you to talk to Roxas because we can’t get through to him. Can you do that?”

Axel was nervous; he’d never had to bring someone down from panicking like that, and he wasn’t sure of his ability to.

“I can try my best.”

“That’s all I can ask of you. Thank you, Axel,” Tifa said sincerely. She pulled the phone away from her ear and pushed the speaker button when the screen lit up again.

“Okay. You’re on speaker now.”

It was quiet for a moment as Axel steeled his nerves. “Roxas?”

Immediately, Roxas froze and his eyes dilated just a little. “Roxas, are you there?”

“Ax… Axel?”

“I’m here, Roxas. Are you alright?”

“I… I don’t…” Roxas realized his nails on his right arm were digging into his side and he relaxed his grip on himself. “I don’t know what happened. I remember getting in the car at the hospital…”

“You were having a panic attack, Rox,” Axel explained.

“I… was?” The blonde sat up a little straighter in his seat when he felt pain in his back from being hunched over.

“Are you okay?” Axel asked him again. “Do you need me to come over?”

Roxas’ lungs were starting to ache and he realized he was holding his breath. He breathed in again and let it out slowly. “I-I think I’m… okay. But if… you wanna come over… I wouldn’t mind.”

“Okay, Rox. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” The phone was handed back to Yuffie as Axel clambered to get clothes on and brush his teeth. He’d been blissfully asleep when Tifa’d called asking for him.

Tifa took her phone off speaker and explained, in a low voice, what had happened in a little more detail. At some point, Riku had gotten back out of the backseat and walked over to his car again to explain to Naminé what was going on.

“Is he okay now?” She asked Riku.

“Yea, he seems to be fine now. I think Axel’s voice calmed him down and broke through.” They sat in silence, Naminé looking down at her lap and Riku at the ground. While Tifa had called Yuffie, Cloud had gone inside and gotten the two automatic chairs and brought them into the garage, where they were still out of sight for the moment.

He peeked his head into the backseat of his car, getting Roxas’ attention. “Remember how your mother said we had a surprise, before we left the hospital?” Roxas looked at his father and nodded. “I have it,” Cloud said, walking back into the shadow of the garage. He stepped forward a few seconds later, with the automatic chair in front of him.

Roxas’ jaw _dropped_. He was stunned silent. How could his parents afford such a nice chair for him? It wasn’t like they were poor by any means, but they didn’t have a whole lot of money to spend after bills and Roxas knew that the hospital bills would take every bit of what they’d saved up.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Cloud said, “and this chair was purchased with money that was donated to us after the news outlets somehow found out about the severity of the accident.” The eldest Strife reached in to unbuckle Roxas from his seat and shift him around so that his feet were outside of the car. He bent down to lift his son up out of the vehicle and maneuvered him to the chair, setting him down in the cushioned seat gently.

He gave Roxas a quick run-down of how the chair was operated, watching as Roxas would try everything to make sure it worked.

“Are you comfortable enough, Roxas?” Tifa asked him.

“Yea, I’m… okay. I’m just overwhelmed a little bit, I guess.”  
  
“Honey, that’s normal, given what you’ve been through.”

Roxas didn’t say anything else as he adjusted to the chair and its controls. Naminé watched her brother, not noticed when Cloud started bringing over another chair similar to the blue one Roxas was sitting in.

“Naminé?” Her father spoke gently, making her tear her eyes from Roxas to look at him instead. “Do you want to get out of the car now?”

Before she could answer for herself, Riku spoke up. “Actually, Mr. Strife… if it’s alright with you, I wanted to take Naminé over to my place to show her the baby furniture and the nursery.” He continued, “I mean, I’ll bring her right back, I just want her to see.”

“That’s fine with me, Riku. Just promise me you’ll be careful, okay?”

“Yes sir,” the new father replied.

“Before you go, though, you’ll want this,” Cloud said, opening the trunk of his car. He pulled one of the pushchairs out and Riku took it from him, loading it into the back trunk space of his car.

“We’ll be back in a little while, then,” Riku said, going back around to the passenger side and shutting the door. He walked to the driver’s side and started the car again, taking off once he was buckled up.

“Are you ready to go inside now, Roxas?” Tifa asked her son. She’d given him a few minutes to get accustomed to controlling his new chair.

He nodded his head in affirmative and she walked ahead of him to open the door. He drove his chair slowly, having figured out that the harder he pushed on the stick that steered, the faster his chair would go. The blonde took in the re-arranged furniture and moved his chair around the groupings to make sure he would fit okay. He was glad when he didn’t seem to have any trouble.

Cloud came in after another minute and informed Roxas that they’d had to re-arrange his bedroom some, so that he would be able to get his chair into the room. That meant downsizing his queen-sized mattress to a dorm-sized twin XL. Roxas was disappointed, but knew why it had to happen that way. With a queen-sized bed, he’d barely had any walking room.

He took in the sight of his bedroom now, with the new bed pushed close to the wall in one corner, his desk right next to it. His dresser had also been pushed to the wall, opposite his desk, right next to the closet. The room was set up very similarly to a dorm room and it threw him off a little bit. This meant that there was a large, open space in the middle of the room so that his chair would be able to maneuver around without trouble. The desk chair he’d had since childhood was also gone, since he wouldn’t need it anymore.

The parents tried to ask him if his room was okay, but he didn’t hear them, and eventually, they sighed and walked away, leaving him to adjust in peace. It was at this point that Axel finally arrived.

The redhead knocked his fingers on the door, alerting Roxas to his presence. “Rox?”

Roxas turned his chair around to face the doorway, glancing up to Axel’s eyes and saying a very monotone, “Hey.”

Axel crossed the threshold and bent down, hugging his best friend. “Sorry it took me so long to get here,” he said.

“It’s okay…” Roxas trailed off, unsure of how to act. He was still very cut off from everyone emotionally, but he was trying not to show it.

“Are you sure you’re alright, Rox? You seem… distant.” Axel was worried and Roxas could very easily tell. The redhead wore his heart on his sleeve.

“I guess. It’s just… hard.” Roxas broke eye contact and looked down at the floor. At that, Axel crouched down and forced Roxas to look at him.

“You know that I’m here for you if you need to talk, Roxas. You can tell me anything,” the redhead said. Again, Roxas looked away. Axel sighed, not knowing how to make his best friend understand. “Roxas, please. Talk to me.”

Roxas’ heart was pounding in his ears as he said, “About what? About how I’m crippled for life and can’t do anything for myself? About how I miss my brother so much, I’d readily trade my life to bring him back? About how I feel _so_ guilty that I just want to die?” The blonde’s voice cracked on the last word and he sobbed.

Axel's heart broke for Roxas. He knew it would be hard for Roxas to come to terms with living while his brother was no longer around, but he’d had no idea it was this bad already. He grabbed Roxas’ hand and squeezed. While Roxas wept, Axel tried to come up with something to say to that. Immediately, his mind had gone to the worst.

“Roxas, are you…” Axel trailed off. He started again, “Do you really want to die that much?” He whispered the question, not really wanting to say it out loud.

“Yes!” Roxas half-screamed at him. “Between me, him, and Naminé, _I’m_ the one who should have died! Not him!”

“ _You don’t get to decide that!_ ” Axel declared.

“Why not? No one would miss me!” Roxas shouted, tears streaming down his face.

“That’s not true!” Axel countered. “…I would.”

He squeezed the blonde’s hand to remind him that he was there still, even though Roxas was still clearly feeling the sting of guilt.

“Roxas,” he said quietly. “If you died, do you know what that would do to me? I would have absolutely zero interest in living a life without you in it. It would _destroy_ me to carry on without you.”

Roxas was digesting this information when Axel stood back up, only to lift the blonde’s face with his hand. When Roxas closed his eyes to avoid looking at his best friend, Axel sighed. He leaned close to Roxas’ face, so close that Roxas could feel his breath.

“You don’t know the effect you have on me, kid.” Axel knew he was taking a huge chance on this, but after realizing that he had romantic feelings for Roxas, he couldn’t ignore the opportunity to act. He kissed the tears away and he felt Roxas tense up.

Roxas had opened his eyes when he felt lips on his cheeks and he was staring up at Axel, majorly confused. “Ax…el?” He rasped.

The redhead closed the space between them, kissing Roxas’ lips gently. He pulled back after only a few seconds and said, “Please don’t ever think that no one would miss you if you died, Roxas.” He let go of the blonde’s hand and walked out of the room, not wanting to stick around on the chance that Roxas was gonna yell at him for pulling that stunt. He left the Strife residence and Roxas couldn’t even move. He felt paralyzed.

_Axel had just kissed him_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me start by apologizing profusely for the horrendously long wait on this chapter. I'm so sorry about that, guys, really. But let me explain because for once, I have a good reason for the long wait.
> 
> I accepted a new job at the end of March, doing housekeeping for one of the hospitals in the area. Now, at the time, I still had classes to get through for the spring semester of school, so it wasn't too bad doing that job and my other one, but I also had some very large group projects to work on throughout the ending of that semester, which meant I had little to no free time to write.
> 
> In addition to that, once the spring semester finished, my grandma's health took a very rapid decline. She got to see my brother graduate from his college, and we took a family trip to meet my newest baby cousin who was born on the first of June. But after we returned home from that trip, her health started failing. It got to the point where she could not be left alone, and my grandpa was helpless to take care of her, so it caused a lot of strain on my mom, who was providing basically 24/7 care. On July 12, my grandma passed away, and it took a horrendous toll on me; so much so that I had to take a week off of work to recoup.
> 
> I'm still not exactly over it, and it's been a month. I doubt I'll ever fully get over losing her, because she was such a HUGE part of my life. I miss her terribly every day.
> 
> So pardon the wait, but I think you can see why it took me so long.


End file.
